Primula veris L.
Cowslip
Cowslip is a much-loved native perennial wildflower that emerges in spring as a neat rosette of crinkled, tongue-shaped leaves. From this rises a single upright stem bearing a nodding, one-sided cluster of small, deep golden-yellow flowers, each marked with little orange spots at the throat and held in a pale green calyx.
About
Cowslip is a much-loved native perennial wildflower that emerges in spring as a neat rosette of crinkled, tongue-shaped leaves. From this rises a single upright stem bearing a nodding, one-sided cluster of small, deep golden-yellow flowers, each marked with little orange spots at the throat and held in a pale green calyx. The flowers carry a gentle, sweet apricot-like scent and appear in mid to late spring.
It is a plant of open, sunny grassland on neutral to calcareous soils: meadows, pastures, downland, banks, road verges and churchyards. Once scarcer after decades of agricultural change, it has returned to many verges and grassland-restoration sites and is a staple of native meadow seed mixes. An important early nectar source, it is visited by long-tongued bees and other spring insects, and is the principal food plant of the rare and beautiful Duke of Burgundy butterfly.
Also known as
Cowslip Primrose · English cowslip · Paigle · Palsywort
Synonyms
Pinguicula suaveolens · Primula canescens · Primula discolor · Primula montana
In our seed mixes
- BFS 1 – Traditional Hay Meadow Wildflower Mix
- BFS 10 – Species Rich Wildflower Meadow Seed Mix
- BFS 130 – Flowering Grassless Lawn Wildflower Seed Mix – 100% Flora
- BFS 4 – Heavy Clay Soil Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS 7 – Calcareous Grassland Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS1(F) – Traditional Hay Meadow 100% Wildflower
- BFS10(F) – Species Rich 100% Wildflower Meadow Mix
- BFS12(F) – Greenroof 100% Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS3(F)-Floodplain 100% Meadow Grassland Mix
- BFS4(F) – Heavy Clay Soil 100% Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS7(F)- Calcareous Grassland 100% Wildflower Seed Mix
- UM6 – Golden Summer Perennial Wildflower Mix
Beta — under active development. This catalogue is still being built and accuracy-checked. The information here (including plant identifications, British native status, soil and sun/shade preferences) is provided in good faith for general guidance only and may contain errors or omissions. It must not be relied upon on its own — please confirm details with us before making planting, specification, foraging or purchasing decisions, and never eat or medicinally use any plant based on this catalogue alone, as some species are toxic. To the extent permitted by law, Phoenix Amenity Supplies accepts no liability for any loss arising from use of this information.