Seed productivity of Helleborus purpurascens Waldst. & Kit. during cultivation at All-Russian Research Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants

Helleborus purpurascens Waldst. & Kit. is a valuable ornamental perennial herbaceous species, highly sought after for shade gardens and exhibiting potential for medicinal applications. While this species has been successfully introduced into various botanical gardens in European Russia, the potential for seed propagation remains understudied. This study aims to identify the developmental features and study the characteristics of seed propagation of H. purpurascens under the conditions of the Central Non-Chernozem region, using Moscow as a case study. H. purpurascens has been cultivated in the VILAR collection since 2006. During the years 2024–2025, the timing of phenological phases up to fruit dehiscence, structural features of dicyclic shoots, and elements of seed productivity were investigated. The number of leaves, generative shoots, and fruits on them was recorded for 15 plants, while the number of carpels per fruit, seeds per carpel, and leaflet parameters were assessed for 40 fruits. The results indicated that the onset of flowering in H. purpurascens occurs in late March to early April, coinciding with residual snow cover and the total heat reaching 125–135°C. Monitoring the condition of carpels at the onset of dehiscence is recommended from mid-June when planning seed collection for this helleborus species to prevent seed loss. A strong positive correlation was found between the number of assimilating leaves of the median formation and the number of generative shoots in H. purpurascens*; the number of leaves exceeded the number of generative shoots in the plants by a factor of 1.24–2.0. Each fruit contained between 4 and 9 carpels. No significant differences were observed in the average number of seeds developing in one leaflet across the study years. Consistent fruit production enables the creation of seed stocks, with the potential for harvesting an estimated 37 to 133 seeds per generative shoot, depending on the number of flowers it bears.

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