Primula, primrose and polyanthus Primroses, members of the primula family, are renowned as the harbinger of spring and the appearance of their flower buds is a sure sign that winter is losing its icy grip.
Hardy primroses have a long flowering season and are also easy to grow.
The family provides an assortment of plants suitable for spring bedding, herbaceous borders, pond margins, naturalising in lawns and alpine beds. Although the wild primrose flowers in spring, others such as Primula polyanthus, prolong the season. The native primrose has a single yellow or cream flower on each stem. Over the centuries, humans and nature have hybridised them with foreign primrose species to produce single flowers in just about every colour imaginable. The native yellow primrose, Primula vulgaris , is a common plant of deciduous woodlands.