Primrose

Where it grows

The common primrose grows in deciduous woodland, hedge banks, and old grassland from Ireland and Britain across Europe to the Caucasus. It tolerates shade and damp soil that defeats most spring bulbs and reaches its highest density in Ireland and on the wet western fringe of Europe.

How to recognise it

A low rosette of crinkled, oblong leaves with a puckered surface and downy underside lies flat against the ground. Single flower stems push up from the centre of the rosette, each bearing a flat, almost saucer-shaped flower three to four centimetres across with five notched pale yellow petals and a deeper yellow eye.

Garden & cultural uses

The garden Polyanthus is a hybrid between primrose and cowslip, with multiple flowers per stem in every conceivable colour, sold by the million as winter and early-spring bedding. Edible primrose petals are sometimes scattered on salads or candied. The name comes from the Latin prima rosa, “first rose” of the year.

In folklore

Primroses were strewn on doorsteps in Ireland on May Eve to keep fairies out, and Disraeli was so fond of the flower that Primrose Day, April 19, was named after him after his death in 1881.