Shire Plants Blog

​British grown, not imported!

​British grown, not imported!

These Acanthus root cuttings were taken from our stock plant a few weeks ago. I've potted them up today and they've gone into one of our polytunnels to grow over the autumn and winter to be ready to sell in the spring. I love the way plants want to l...
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Plants for the Royal Horticultural Society

Plants for the Royal Horticultural Society

We are proud to be trusted to supply plants to some large organisations, including The National Trust and English Heritage. This week we have supplied Hardy Chrysanthemum 'Mary Stoker' to The Royal Horticultural Society, for one of their prestigious ...
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Customer Feedback

Customer Feedback

We love receiving positive feedback from happy customers! This came in yesterday and you can read more recent comments from customers here.
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Dainthus 'Allspice'

Dainthus 'Allspice'

We were very pleased to be reunited with this 17th century pink earlier in the year, thanks to the generosity of a kind customer. Dianthus 'Allspice' has always been popular but, like so many old pinks, it is not widely sold because most nu...
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September Seed Sowing

September Seed Sowing

September is a good month for sowing and germinating hardy perennial seed. It's especially good if you have freshly collected seed from the garden, because fresh seed usually germinates much faster. These seedlings will be potted up in the polyt...
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Japanese Anemones

Japanese Anemones

Japanese anemones make a wonderful show in late summer and autumn. Tall stems of white or pink flowers stand above attractive green foliage, which is very drought tolerant. We have some growing in a border in deep shade on heavy clay which dries...
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Cow Slops

Cow Slops

I love the common names of Caltha palustris (which we've just added to our range): Marsh Marigold; King Cups; Cow Slops; Water Blobs; Golden Cups; Crazy Betty; Molly Blobs.Different common names for the same plant come about because there used to be ...
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Plants suitable for cut flowers

Plants suitable for cut flowers

We are often asked for recommendations for plants which are good for cut flowers so we have now created a new category on the website for just that. These plants are known to provide flowers suitable for cutting, by virtue of long stems, good scent a...
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St John's Wort

St John's Wort

St John's Wort is the latest addition to our range. It's a wild flower which also makes a good garden plant. "It groweth every where in untilled pastures and fields, which are somewhat moist especially, and neare unto the borders of fields." (Gerard'...
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Perennial Sweet Pea

Perennial Sweet Pea

Lathyrus chilensis is a stunning perennial sweet pea. A vigorous plant, it will climb a structure or sprawl through a mixed bed and is covered in masses of pink flowers for much of the summer. It has the benefit of lasting for years and it self-...
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Are you dull and old?

Are you dull and old?

Are you, or do you know, a dull old person? Well read on because Sweet Cicely may be the cure!John Gerard was an Elizabethan physician and gardener, who published what became the most famous of all herbals - and I thoroughly recommend reading it, for...
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Wild Chicory

Wild Chicory

The origin of Chicory is described in a German folk tale. A young woman sat down at the side of a road to weep for her dead lover. None could console her, and so great was her grief that she resolved never to stop weeping unless she was turned into&h...
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Pillow Talk

Pillow Talk

Matthiola incana 'Pillow Talk' has the most heavily scented flowers and just a few stems can fill a room with a lovely fragrance. This plant has long been a cottage garden favourite, grown in the border for its masses of white flowers, or for th...
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Fox and Cubs

Fox and Cubs

This wonderful plant is called Fox and Cubs because of the dual appearance of bronzy-orange open flowers (the fox) alongside red-brown flower buds (the cubs). Tall stems hold the flowers above neat rosettes of dark green foliage from June to Sep...
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Beautiful wildflowers

Beautiful wildflowers

Our British native plants have some of the prettiest flowers. This is Dropwort (Filipendula vulgaris), which has coral-pink buds which open to beautiful fluffy white flowers. Eminently suited to our British pollinators, and wonderful in the garden or...
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The Chelsea Chop

The Chelsea Chop

It's Chelsea Flower Show, so it's time to go around the garden doing the Chelsea chop. This isn't a new type of dance, sweeping the gardening world, but a method of pruning for herbaceous perennials. The name comes from the timing of the task, which ...
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Robins Nesting

Robins Nesting

We've had to temporarily fence one off one of our potting benches because a pair of Robins have built a nest in a rubbish bag (on the ground in the corner). She's been sitting in the nest for a while, but now the parents keep nervously siding in with...
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World Bee Day

World Bee Day

It's #WorldBeeDay today and the RHS are encouraging gardeners to plant bee-friendly plants including Lavender, Oregano, Allium, Nepeta, Cosmos and more.Generally, bees require 'simple' or 'single' flowers, which allow them easy access to the nectar a...
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Pink Dandelions in flower now

Pink Dandelions in flower now

Pink dandelions always cause a double-take in the garden. These plants are identical to our native dandelion but they come from central Asia and the blooms are an attractive pale pink with a golden centre. They don't spread in the same way that our n...
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Erysimum 'Constant Cheer'

Erysimum 'Constant Cheer'

Erysimum 'Constant Cheer' is a well-named perennial wallflower. Its brick-orange flowers darken red and then change to mauve as they age. The plant flowers constantly, from late spring through into autumn.Full details in the shop, here.
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