Primula farinosa (Al) | bird's eye primrose

Other common names

mealy primrose

Alpine Rockery Herbaceous Perennial

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A rare, herbaceous perennial forming a rosette of narrowly oval or spoon-shaped dark green leaves with a silvery coating. Mauve-pink flowers with a yellow eye appear from mid-spring to early summer

Position

Full sun, Partial shade

Soil Types

Clay, Loam

Max Height

0.1-0.5 metres

Max Spread

0-0.1 metre

Size

Time to Maturity: 2–5 years
Max Spread: 0-0.1 metre
Max Height: 0.1-0.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Clay Loam

Moisture: Moist but well–drained or Poorly–drained
pH: Acid or Neutral

Position

Full sun Partial shade

Aspect: East–facing or North–facing or South–facing or West–facing
Exposure: Exposed or Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20): H5

Colour & Scent

Season	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family: Primulaceae
Native to GB/Ireland: Yes
Foliage: Deciduous
Habit: Clump forming
Genus: Primula are herbaceous or semi-evergreen perennials, forming a basal rosette of simple leaves, with salver-shaped or bell-shaped flowers which may be solitary or carried in an umbel or in whorls on an erect stem
Name Status: Correct
Horticultural Group

Horticultural Classification Codes

Horticultural Classification Codes are often given to genera which have a large number of species or cultivars. They are used to categorise cultivated plants based on specific, shared characteristics such as shape, colour, size or flowering time, and can be displayed as letters or numbers

For example:
Dahlia ‘Sunset Kate (Sin) = Single flower
Rosa ‘Marigold’ (HT) = Hybrid Tea: Farinosae section primulas are rosette-forming perennials, usually with powdery farina on the leaves or flower stems, with narrowly oblanceolate leaves and a simple umbel of lilac, pink or purple flowers with deeply notched corolla lobes
Plant Range: Eurasia

How to Grow

Cultivation

Grow in full sun or partial shade in moderately fertile, moist but well-drained, humus-rich soil

Propagation

Propagate by division in autumn or after flowering

Suggested planting locations and garden types

Cottage and informal garden
Rock garden
Wildflower meadow

Pruning

No pruning required

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, vine weevil, slugs, leaf and bud eelworms, leaf-mining flies and glasshouse red spider mite

Diseases

May be susceptible to primula leaf spot, primula brown core and grey moulds