This mouth-watering display of hellebores appeared on Ashwood Nurseries exhibit at the RHS Vincent Square show last month. More than 9,000 visitors attended the two-day show, and they came from all over Britain and Europe. German and Dutch visitors were especially noticeable and they honed in on the snowdrops with gusto despite the fact that rarities were selling for £30 or more per bulb.

This is always a popular show — somehow early plants always set the pulse racing. I was taken with a straw-coloured winter aconite called Eranthis hyemalis ex ‘Schwelfelglanz’ (German for ‘Sulphur Shimmer’) and another called ‘Grunling’ (‘Greenling’). Neither is listed in the RHS Plant Finder yet. But Bob Brown of Cotswold Garden Flowers (01386 833849) and Avon Bulbs (01460 242177) have (or had) both and they look better than they sound.

There was also a fine-looking virescent (all green) snowdrop on Avon Bulbs called ‘Green Tears’ , with a note underneath saying “not for sale”. In years to come, I hope to have it in the garden – at a price. These expensive buys are called vanity snowdrops apparently. They excite gardeners enough for them to part with a hundred pounds or more for one bulb.

You might imagine the recession is stopping keen gardeners from making such extravagant purchases. But it isn’t; it seems that specialist nurseries are still doing well. Perhaps we gardeners need an antidote for all that financial gloom and doom. The Vietnamese introductions on Crug Farm (01248 670232. www.crug-farm.co.uk) proved so popular that the nursery sold out two thirds into the opening day.

Ashwood Nurseries were exhibiting hepaticas and they were selling like hot cakes too. But hellebores were being passed by generally, probably because gardeners, having already bought loads in the past, have run out of room.

But there are now better doubles than ever in a greater range of colours. Which other long-lived perennial produces such showy flowers in late winter and spring? A good double resembles a water lily. An anemone-centred hellebore has a ruffled middle and there are also picotees with finely-edged petals. Prices range between £16 and £26. We are only just reaping the rewards of years of plant breeding. Ten to 15 years ago, doubles were small, wispy and in dull colours. Just look at them now. But a good single is hard to beat and best hellebore colours in the garden setting are white, pale-pink, green and clear red. The latter is the hardest to find and it must always be placed where sunlight falls in order to glow like wine in a glass.

Ashwood is also breeding its own hybrids, using species and existing hybrids. They have crossed the pale-pink Himalayan H. thibetanus with H. x nigercors to produce ‘Pink Ice’. It is a strong, vigorous plant with very similar silver-pink flowers, only much larger, and the emerging foliage and new stems are flushed with pink-red. Another new Ashwood hybrid ‘Briar Rose’, bred from H. niger and H. versicarius, has deep pink flowers with a bold white centre. Both will be available in coming years – at a price. But I will justify any purchase by telling myself that I am just doing my best for the economy! (tel 01384 401996 for further information.)