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 Nigella hispanica by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, featuring royal violet-blue petals, dark feathery centers, green foliage, and unopened buds on mulched ground—hinting at its striking architectural seed pods.
Annual

Nigella hispanica

The Spanish one, and a considerably bigger plant than the Miss Jekyll types

Sow: Mar–May · Sep
£2.30 View
A close-up of Phacelia flowers, with delicate purple petals and green foliage, from Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden. These bee-friendly blooms are often grown from Phacelia seeds as beneficial green manure in gardens.
Annual

Phacelia

Coiled lavender-blue flower spikes that uncurl as they…

Sow: Mar–Sep
£1.95 View
Phlox Sugar Stars by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden features clusters of violet-blue, star-shaped flowers blooming amid green foliage, bordered by a white concrete edge with blurred grass and sky in the background.
Annual

Phlox Sugar Stars

Star-shaped flowers in violet-blue and deep indigo, each…

Sow: Mar–May
£2.20 View
Close-up of Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden's Poppy Black Peony with dark burgundy, ruffled blooms, green foliage, and stems against a blue sky. Perfect for dried flower arrangements.
Annual

Poppy Black Peony

Huge fully double blooms in a velvety maroon…

Sow: Mar–May · Aug–Sep
£2.20 View
Poppy Flanders Red
Annual

Poppy Flanders Red

The British field poppy, the same Papaver rhoeas…

Sow: Mar–May · Aug–Sep
£1.59 View
Two bees gather nectar from a large, light purple Poppy Hungarian Blue flower by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden, featuring a dark center and green leaves, with another poppy blooming in the background. This variety is known for edible poppy seeds.
Annual

Poppy Hungarian Blue

Large single violet-purple bowls, eight to ten centimetres…

Sow: Mar–May · Sep–Oct
£2.20 View
A vivid Poppy Ladybird by Bishy Barnabees Cottage Garden opens amid green foliage, viewed from above. The softly blurred background highlights its scarlet-red petals with black centers and intricate stamens.
Annual

Poppy Ladybird

Scarlet cups with a huge black blotch at…

Sow: Mar–May · Sep–Oct
£2.10 View
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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.