The Oxlip (Primular elatior) is an British native wildflower, classified as endangered in the wild. Similar to the Cowslip, it has larger and paler flowers, which smell of apricots. Oxlips were traditionally used to treat coughs and rheumatism. We ar...

Pleased to have added two new plants to our list today. Matthiola incana 'Pillow Talk' has the strongest scented flowers I know. They are a delicious clove-like scent, not unlike Pinks. Plant near where you sit or walk in the garden to enjo...

A primrose flowering in our field today. Despite not belonging to the rose family, the name Primrose is thought to derive from the Latin for 'first' (prima) 'rose' (rosa). Lovely to see them at this time of year.We sell the true wild primrose here.&n...

Lots of new plants on the way on the propagation benches. Here we have a selection of Malva, Silene, Woad, Baptisia and Cenolophium. Lots more coming up too :-)

This aptly named violet is in flower now. I love the rich purple colour. Currently sold out, but we have some other violets available here. 

The Galium family of plants is often overlooked in the garden, but they provide a useful function for ground cover and they are also fantastic for pollinators. As with many native plants, they also have interesting mythology and legends surrounding t...

If you are a key worker (in addition to the NHS and main emergency services, it includes prison officers, Red Cross, St John Ambulance, Search and Rescue etc), as a token of our thanks for the important work you do, we offer a discount on your order....

Two new Celandines added to our range today. A beautiful ivory white variety called 'Salmon White' and a lovely double named 'Double Bronze'. Celandines are fantastic at this time of year and we now sell eight varieties.View the range here.

I grew this beautiful anemone for the first time last year and I'm pleased to have plants listed on the website now.It's probably the nicest variety of our native wood anemone I know (other than the wild, white one of course). The deep blue flowers r...

These Primulas are all related and evoke childhood memories of playing in hedgerows and The Common in springtime, near my home in rural Buckinghamshire.They work well in the garden, planted next to a hedge, in a border or wildflower area, or even in ...

This is one of the earliest violets to flower. Hence its name: Viola Christmas. 

Fans of Harry potter may recall that Harry and his classmates were required to wear earmuffs while repotting mandrake plants in their herbology lesson. This, like much of Rowling's fiction, is based on actual mythology.First recorded in England in 15...

We had a friendly Goldcrest visit us in the potting shed today. The Goldcrest is the UKs smallest bird and we usually only see them flitting in and out of the hedges so this was a treat. We think it must have hit the window as it was a bit…

Hardy Chrysanthemums come into their own at this time of year. Very useful when many other plants are shutting down for the winter. This one is 'Starlet' but we have many other varieties available too.Click here to view the range.

If you fancy some foxgloves in the garden next year, now is the perfect time to plant them, because they flower from their second year.Although the air temperature may have dropped, the soil temperature holds much longer and plants will begin to esta...

We have many old and interesting 'pinks', because they are one of my favourite plants and I love the strong clove scent of many of them. This is the latest addition to our range. It's Dianthus 'Tatra Ghost'. I don't have a lot of information about it...

Taking cuttings today. If ever a plant was well named, it's Persicaria 'Painter's Pallet'. Each leaf looks like a decorators overalls :-)

We're very pleased to be able to offer this unusual foxglove (Digitalis purpurea 'Campanulata') now. It has the usual foxglove flowers most of the way up the stems, but the terminal flower of each stem is a completely different, open form (peloric). ...

Hollyhocks are the archetypal English (and wider UK!) cottage garden plant which has been loved for centuries. Gerard’s Herbal (1597) notes: “These Hollihockes are sowne in gardens, almost every where, and are in vaine sought elsewhere.” Legend ...

The flower buds of Calandrinia grandiflora always remind me of snakeheads. They hang down from the stem and raise themselves up one at a time to open in all their bright pink glory. Being such open flowers mean the bees love them.These tough plants g...