Primula vulgaris Seeds | Primrose

Pale yellow primrose flowers with notched petals above wrinkled leaves — Primrose (*Primula vulgaris*): Primulaceae, native to woods and hedge banks of western Europe.

LATIN NAME: Primula vulgaris

COMMON NAME: Primrose

Plant Profile

The primrose is a low, rosette-forming perennial of woods, hedge banks and damp meadows in western Europe, from Norway to Portugal and east into the Balkans and Turkey. The leaves are oblong, wrinkled and soft, five to fifteen centimetres long, and they lie flat in a rosette close to the ground.

In early spring the plant pushes up short stems, each carrying a single pale yellow flower an inch or so across, with five notched petals and a darker eye; pink and red forms occur in the wild, and garden selections extend the range. It flowers from February to May, earlier than almost any other woodland plant, and it is one of the first sources of nectar for queens emerging from hibernation.

Science & Biotechnology

Primula vulgaris is distylous: individual plants carry either pin-eyed flowers, with the stigma at the top of the tube, or thrum-eyed flowers, with the stamens at the top. The arrangement promotes cross-pollination between the two forms, and it was one of the cases Charles Darwin used in his work on heterostyly, published in 1862.

The two forms are determined by a small region of the genome that behaves as a supergene, and a plant cannot easily be fertilised by pollen from its own form. The species hybridises freely with the cowslip and with the oxlip, and the hybrids are common where the parents grow together. It is placed in Primulaceae, in the same order as the pimpernels and the loosestrifes.

Uses & Benefits

Primroses are planted in woodland gardens, under deciduous shrubs and at the edge of a lawn, where their early flowers can be seen before the canopy closes. They are also used in containers and in spring bedding, and the garden forms, doubles, hose-in-hose, and colours from white to deep red, are sold as pot plants in their thousands.

The flowers are edible and are used to decorate cakes and salads, and the leaves are eaten as a spring vegetable in some regions. In herbal medicine the root was used as an expectorant, and the flowers were made into a wine and a vinegar; the cowslip, a close relative, was the more usual source. The plant is now protected in parts of its range, and wild plants should never be dug.

Growing from Seed

Primula seed loses viability quickly and should be sown fresh in late summer. Sow thinly on the surface of a peat-free seed compost, cover with a fine layer of vermiculite, and keep the pan cool, shaded and damp; germination is inhibited by warmth and by light, so a temperature of 12-15 °C and a dark cover help.

Germination can be slow and uneven, and a spell in a cold frame over winter will bring the remaining seed through. Prick the seedlings out into small pots once they have two true leaves, and grow them on cool. Plant out in autumn in moist, humus-rich soil in part shade, and mulch with leafmould. Divide the clumps every three years after flowering, and water in dry springs, since the plant’s roots are shallow.

Our Take

The first flower of the year in a wood or a hedge bank, and one of the easiest primulas to grow. Give it shade, leafmould and moisture.

Flower Seeds