Primula veris
“Cowslip”

photos: Elaine Ford, http://www.flickr.com/photos/10991543@N02/

Look through almost any vintage tome on herbalism or cottage gardening & you’ll find this plant. Try to find one at your local nursery, though? Good luck! Tougher than its boinky bedding compatriots & with more grace, as well as a plethora of herbal & edible uses, it has an interesting history in folklore (look it up!). Common throughout Europe & found along roadsides & in meadows, it’s one of the most long-lived Primroses for our area & gives us a pretty spot of color thru Spring. Fragrant yellow flowers nod atop 8-10” stems, rising from fresh, green rosettes to 1' wide. In low water situations, the plant will go dormant during the Summer. You know what that means - DRY SHADE! Hurrah!

Claire Woods
Propagator