How to Grow
Sweet Pea 'Mollie Rilstone' from Seed
One of the most sought-after heirloom sweet peas ever bred — Hardy Annual H3; RHS AGM; cream petals edged with antique rose-pink picotee; pink gradually flushes into cream as flowers mature; powerful traditional fragrance; long Spencer stems; bred by Pip Tremewan in Cornwall 1993; sow Oct–Nov (best) cold frame or Jan–Mar at 15°C; TOXICITY: all parts mildly toxic; pick every 2–3 days
Sweet Pea 'Mollie Rilstone' is widely considered one of the most beautiful varieties ever bred — a high claim that the variety consistently justifies through the specific combination of qualities it delivers: cream petals edged with soft antique rose-pink picotee that gradually flushes from the edges inward as flowers mature, producing a dynamic colour development from defined bicolour to soft vintage blush; powerful, traditional sweet pea fragrance; long, straight Spencer stems typically bearing 4 blooms; and the RHS Award of Garden Merit confirming outstanding reliability in UK conditions.
Bred by Pip Tremewan of Cornwall in 1993 and now one of the most sought-after heirloom sweet peas among growers who have discovered it, Mollie Rilstone has the quality that separates the enduring from the merely fashionable: it rewards growing every season. Gardeners who encounter it for the first time — through its appearance in a vase, or through the fragrance of a freshly-cut stem — typically add it to their permanent annual growing list immediately. The picotee colour, the progressive flush from edge to cream, the powerful scent, and the quality of the stems together constitute one of the finest sweet pea experiences the cottage garden cutting garden can provide.
Quick Facts at a Glance
Plant Type
Hardy Annual H3 — Spencer type; RHS AGM; one of the most sought-after heirloom varieties
Colour
Cream petals edged with antique rose-pink picotee; pink flushes into cream as flowers mature
Bred
By Pip Tremewan in Cornwall, 1993; one of the finest Spencer sweet peas ever raised
RHS AGM
Award of Garden Merit — confirmed outstanding garden performance and reliability
TOXICITY
All parts mildly toxic — do not eat; keep away from children and pets
Difficulty
2 out of 5 — same care as all Spencer sweet peas; richly rewards attention to detail
Understanding Mollie Rilstone
Toxicity Warning — All Parts Mildly Toxic
Sweet pea seeds and all parts of the plant are mildly toxic if ingested. They must not be eaten and should not be mistaken for edible garden peas, which they resemble closely in seed form. Keep seeds and plants away from children and pets at all stages.
The Picotee — Cream Edged with Antique Rose-Pink
Mollie Rilstone is a picotee sweet pea: a variety in which the petals are predominantly one colour (in this case, creamy-white) with a defined edge in a contrasting colour (in this case, soft antique rose-pink). The RHS description is precise: "a cream ground and a pale-pink, picotee edge." As the flowers mature on the plant and in the vase, the pink picotee colouring gradually "flushes" into the cream ground — diffusing from the edges inward so that the flower develops a vintage, slightly blushed quality as it ages. This progressive colour shift from defined picotee edge to flushed blush-pink-on-cream gives Mollie Rilstone a dynamic quality over its vase life that single-coloured sweet peas cannot provide.
Bred by Pip Tremewan, Cornwall, 1993
Mollie Rilstone was raised by Pip Tremewan of Cornwall in 1993 — a relatively recent introduction by heirloom sweet pea standards (many beloved varieties date from the early 20th century) that has nevertheless established itself firmly as one of the most sought-after varieties in existence. It is described as "widely considered one of the most beautiful varieties ever bred" in the Bishy product description. Its RHS Award of Garden Merit, awarded for confirmed outstanding and reliable garden performance in UK conditions, reflects the unanimous esteem in which it is held by sweet pea growers.
Sowing, Establishing, and the Golden Rule
Sow in root trainers or deep pots at 1cm depth. Soak seeds for a few hours first. Best: autumn sowing October–November in a cold frame for flowers from May. Spring sowing January–March at 15°C. Pinch at 4 pairs of leaves for bushy multi-stemmed growth. Pick every 2–3 days — never allow seed pods. Feed fortnightly with high-potash fertiliser from first buds. Water at the base; mulch generously.
Sowing & Growing On
Sow Oct–Nov (best) or Jan–Mar at 15°C — Root Trainers — 1cm Deep — Soak First — Plant Mar–May — 2m+ Support — Pick Every 2–3 Days
Sow in root trainers at 1cm after soaking. Best: October–November in a cold frame for May flowers. Spring: January–March at 15°C. Plant March–April in rich deep soil with 2m+ support. Pinch at 4 pairs. Pick every 2–3 days without fail. Feed fortnightly from first buds.
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Sow in root trainers or deep pots at 1cm depth after soaking seeds for a few hours. As with all Spencer sweet peas, the long taproot requires depth from the earliest stage. Autumn sowing (October–November) in a cold frame produces the strongest plants and flowers from May. Spring sowing (January–March) at a consistent 15°C for summer flowers — avoid temperatures above 18°C, which inhibit germination significantly.
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Grow on in cool, bright conditions at 10–15°C until planting out. Mollie Rilstone grows to 1.5–2.5m — a vigorous Spencer climber requiring a strong, tall support structure. Plant out March–April (autumn sowings) or April–May (spring sowings) into a deeply-dug, generously-manured planting position. Space 20–25cm apart with the support structure in place before planting.
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Pinch out at 4 pairs of leaves and begin training immediately. Regular guidance of the climbing stems to the support structure from the earliest stage — removing wayward tendrils and tying in main stems — develops the upright, well-organised climbing growth that produces the longest and straightest stems. This is particularly important for a variety grown partly for its exhibition quality and the elegance of its stems in the vase.
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Pick every 2–3 days; feed fortnightly from first buds; water at the base; mulch generously. Mollie Rilstone's powerful fragrance and beautiful blooms reward every element of this management routine. The combination of consistent picking (preventing seed set), regular high-potash feeding, deep base watering, and mulching produces a plant that flowers continuously from May through September in a good year, filling the cutting garden with the creamy-picotee blooms and powerful fragrance that make this one of the most sought-after heirloom varieties in existence.
Growing On & Care
The Picotee — A Dynamic Colour
Mollie Rilstone's picotee characteristic is dynamic rather than static: when the flowers first open, the cream ground and the antique rose-pink picotee edge are clearly distinct, creating a precise bicolour appearance. As the flowers mature, the pink "flushes" gradually from the edges into the cream — the two colours softening and merging so that older flowers on the same stem have the blushed, vintage quality of cream suffused with rose. This means a stem of Mollie Rilstone displays multiple colour states simultaneously — the freshest flowers at the tip showing the sharpest picotee, the older flowers below showing the soft blush — a quality of visual complexity that no single-colour sweet pea can provide.
The Heirloom Status
Mollie Rilstone's reputation as one of the most sought-after heirloom sweet peas reflects a specific quality: it is neither the flashiest nor the most dramatic variety available, but it is consistently and deeply beautiful in a way that does not diminish with familiarity. Gardeners who grow it once typically grow it every year thereafter. Its combination of cream-and-picotee colour, powerful fragrance, long stems, and the progressive colour development as flowers age gives it a depth of interest across the full season that many more immediately striking varieties cannot sustain.
In Wedding and Romantic Arrangements
The cream-and-antique-rose-pink palette of Mollie Rilstone is specifically suited to the romantic, vintage floral aesthetic: the soft blush quality of the maturing flowers, combined with the strong sweet fragrance, creates the specific combination that makes sweet peas irreplaceable in wedding floristry and special occasion arrangements. The cream ground reads as ivory in photographs; the antique rose-pink adds warmth without the vividness of deep pink; and the fragrance fills a room with a quality that no artificial fragrance replicates. Mollie Rilstone alongside cream Gypsophila and pale pink Astrantia is one of the most requested garden-grown wedding flower combinations.
Exhibition Quality
As a Spencer type with RHS AGM, Mollie Rilstone is exhibition-standard: it produces the long, straight stems, typically bearing 4 blooms per stem, that the show bench requires, and the picotee colour pattern — which must be consistent and clearly defined for exhibition purposes — is reliably well-marked in this variety. For gardeners who show sweet peas, Mollie Rilstone provides the cream-and-pink picotee class with dependable quality. For domestic growers, the same qualities translate into vase arrangements of professional elegance from home-grown stems.
Fragrance — Powerful and Traditional
Mollie Rilstone is described as having a powerful and intoxicating fragrance that has won awards for exceptional scent. The RHS plant description notes it as "strongly scented." As a Spencer type — which as a group retain much of the old sweet pea fragrance character while also providing large modern flowers — Mollie Rilstone provides both the Spencer-standard flower form and the traditional sweet pea scent intensity that is the primary reason many gardeners grow sweet peas at all. A room with fresh Mollie Rilstone stems in a vase is filled with fragrance within minutes.
Year-on-Year from Saved Seed
Mollie Rilstone, as a Spencer-type open-pollinated variety, can be saved from season to season from home-grown seed. At the end of the season, allow a few pods to ripen fully on the plant — they will turn papery and brown when seeds are mature. Collect on a dry day, label clearly with the variety name and year, and store in a cool, dry place over winter. Home-saved Mollie Rilstone seed germinates reliably and maintains variety characteristics year on year, providing a self-sustaining supply of one of the finest sweet pea varieties ever raised from a single initial packet.
Sowing & Season Calendar
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
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| Autumn sow (Oct–Nov; root trainers; cold frame) |
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| Spring sow (Jan–Mar; cool 15°C; deep pots) |
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| Plant out (Mar–May depending on sow date) |
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| Pick every 2–3 days (never allow seed pods) |
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Common Problems & Solutions
| Problem | Likely Cause | What to Do |
|---|---|---|
| Picotee edge not clearly defined | Plant stressed; hot dry conditions; seed pods forming | Ensure consistent watering and fortnightly feeding. Strip all seed pods. Well-nourished plants in good conditions consistently produce the defined picotee edge. Stress reduces colour clarity. |
| Flowering stopping mid-season | Seed pods developing; heat stress | Strip all seed pods immediately. Mulch the root zone deeply. Water at the base every 2–3 days. Resume fortnightly high-potash feeding. Mollie Rilstone resumes production as conditions improve. |
| Weak stems; fewer than 4 blooms per stem | Insufficient nutrition; not trained vertically | Feed fortnightly from first buds. Prepare soil generously. Train the main stem vertically from the earliest stage for maximum stem length. |
| Poor germination on spring sowing | Temperature too high; seeds not soaked | Maintain 15°C — temperatures above 18°C significantly inhibit sweet pea germination. Soak seeds beforehand. Nick any that fail to swell after soaking. |
Plant Specifications
The picotee that flushes from antique rose-pink edges into cream as it matures — powerful fragrance, long stems, and the quality that earns a place in the garden every season thereafter
Sow in root trainers at 1cm after soaking seeds. Best: October–November in a cold frame for May flowers. Spring: January–March at 15°C. Plant March–April in deep, richly-manured soil with 2m+ support. Pinch at 4 pairs of leaves. Pick every 2–3 days without fail and feed fortnightly from first buds. Mollie Rilstone provides cream-and-antique-rose-pink picotee flowers with powerful fragrance from May through September.
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