Primroses for tea

Primroses (Primula vulgaris) epitomise spring, and the first yellow sightings of them give me hope that winter has finally ended. They used to grow much more abundantly in the wild and became a rural industry in the nineteenth century, when trains transported posies of them in tissue-lined boxes to the cities.

Now they grow more sparsely in hedgerows and woodland, and I would never pick them to make an arrangement. Instead, I buy or dig up an existing plant growing in my garden and then, when the arrangement is no longer looking its best, I plant it back in the ground, somewhere cool and shady, where it will thrive and multiply, knowing that I’ll have twice as many to bring inside next year.

There’s something ethereal about primroses and, to exaggerate their fragility, I chose the oldest, most delicate china for their containers. However, with china there’s no in-built drainage, so you need to improvise and make your own. I sprinkle gravel or wood chips at the bottom before potting and usually the plants stay perky.

Primroses do like to be as cool as possible—they really can’t cope with being hot and in direct sunlight, where they will wilt sulkily right in front of your eyes. This display lasted happily for weeks in my chilly bathroom. I’ve also decorated an Easter tea table with primroses in china. They look heavenly dotted around in cups on saucers mixed in with actual cups of tea and cakes.

Ingredients

Gravel or wood chips

Pretty china bowl and cup with saucer

2 primrose (Primula vulgaris) plants

Potting compost

Sphagnum moss

1 Put a 1cm layer of gravel or wood chips at the bottom of the bowl or cup.

2 Position the primrose plants in the centre and fill in any gaps with potting compost.

3 Decorate the top of the potting compost with pieces of sphagnum moss, and water well.

Taken from Inspire by Willow Crossley, published by CICO Books (£25).

Photography by Emma Mitchell

© CICO Books.

In the Middle Ages, primroses were used to make love potions. It was also believed that primroses had great healing powers and could even cure paralysis.