Bishy Barnabee’s Cottage Garden

Beginners

Forgiving flowers, fast results — perfect for your first garden

Quick picks
Sow this monthSpring favouritesCut flowersFor the vasePollinatorsBees and butterfliesHardy annualsAutumn-sow readyEasy to growFirst-time friendlyUnder £2.50Stock up favourites
116 products
Close-up of vibrant red and carmine-pink Cornflower Red Boy blooms from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Ltd, growing among green stems and buds in a field, with foreground flowers in sharp focus and a softly blurred background.
Annual

Cornflower Red Boy

The name oversells it, and the flower is better for it

Sow: Mar–May · Sep
£2.30 View
A close-up of a Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Cosmos Fizzy Rose flower with a long stem, shot from below against a blue sky with scattered clouds and blurred green trees in the background.
Annual

Cosmos Fizzy Rose

Semi-double blooms in soft pale mauve-pink, each petal…

Sow: Mar–Jun
£2.20 View
The Cosmos Purity by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden features a single white bloom with a yellow center, standing out against green foliage—ideal for moon gardens or adding stunning white flowers to your cutting garden.
Annual

Cosmos Purity

Broad silky white petals around a small gold…

Sow: Mar–Jun
£2.40 View
A mezzaluna knife rests on a wooden board with chopped herbs—great for pickling—and fresh dill sprigs, perfect for planting Dill Bouquet seeds from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, beside a beige cloth.
Herb Seeds

Dill Bouquet

The dill the cutting garden grows

Sow: Mar–Jul
£2.15 View
Feverfew by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden Ltd features small white daisy-like flowers with yellow centers and green, serrated leaves, ideal for outdoor cottage gardens and often started from seed as a medicinal herb.
Perennial

Feverfew

Clouds of small white daisies with yellow button…

Sow: Feb–Apr · Sep
£2.30 View
Keep growing with us
Not sure where to start?
Try our curated seed boxes
Free growing guides
Written by our farm team
Pair with
Plant supports and propagators

Growing flowers as a beginner — your questions answered

I have never grown anything before — where do I start?

Start with cornflowers, calendula, nigella, or cosmos. These are the most forgiving flowers we sell. You can sow them directly into the ground from March onwards, they germinate quickly, and they flower within about ten weeks of sowing. You do not need a greenhouse, special compost, or any expensive equipment. Just prepared soil, water, and a little patience.

What is the most common mistake new gardeners make?

Sowing too early. There is a strong temptation in February to start sowing because it feels like spring is finally arriving — but soil temperature is what matters, not the calendar. Seeds sown into cold soil sit there, rot, and never come up. Wait until March or April, when soil has warmed enough to crumble nicely between your fingers. Your seeds will reward your patience.

Do I need a greenhouse?

No. Many of the most rewarding flowers — cornflowers, calendula, nigella, ammi, cosmos, larkspur — do best when sown directly outside. A sunny windowsill is plenty for the half-hardy types like cosmos and zinnias if you want to start them a few weeks earlier. A greenhouse is a nice-to-have, never a need-to-have.

How quickly can I expect flowers?

For fast annuals like calendula or California poppy, you can have flowers within eight to ten weeks of sowing. Most cottage garden annuals flower from June or July through to the first frosts in October or November. Sweet peas take a little longer to settle in. Biennials like foxgloves and sweet williams flower in their second year — worth the wait but plan accordingly.