The Biennial Cottage Garden Flower Box

You will receive 8 full-sized packets of heritage biennial seeds:

• 🔔 Canterbury Bells 'Crown Single Mixed': The classic cottage flower. Sturdy stems loaded with large, single, bell-shaped blooms in shades of blue, rose, and white.
• 🌙 Honesty (Lunaria annua): Grown for its vibrant purple spring flowers and its famous translucent 'silver dollar' seed pods which are essential for dried winter bouquets.
• ⚪ Wallflower 'Ivory White': A sophisticated alternative to orange varieties. Dense spikes of creamy-white flowers with a rich, sweet fragrance.
• ⚔️ Sweet William 'Indian Carpet': A dwarf variety perfect for the front of the border. It creates a low, lush mat of foliage topped with spicy-scented, bi-colour blooms.
• 🕊️ Sweet Rocket 'White' (Hesperis): A pure white version of the wildflower classic. It releases a heady, violet-like perfume in the evening, perfect for moon gardens.
• 🖤 Hollyhock 'Nigra' (The Watchman): The most dramatic hollyhock of all. Tall, majestic spikes of single, chocolate-maroon flowers that look almost black.
• 🍋 Foxglove 'Primrose Yellow': A rare and elegant beauty. Tall spires of soft, creamy-yellow bells that light up shady corners and woodland edges.
• 💙 Forget-me-not 'Victoria Mix': The essential spring carpet. Compact, bushy plants covered in clouds of tiny indigo-blue, pink, and white flowers.

Biennials operate on a two-year cycle:

Year 1 (Summer/Autumn): You sow the seeds. The plant focuses energy on growing a strong root system and a rosette of leaves. It does not flower this year.

Year 2 (Spring/Summer): The plant re-emerges from winter dormancy, sends up tall flower spikes, blooms spectacularly, sets seed, and then dies.

Sustainability Tip: Most of the plants in this box are prolific self-seeders. Once you have established them, they will drop their own seeds and pop up year after year for free!

When to Sow: June and July are the sweet spots.

How to Sow:
You don't need fancy equipment. You can sow these in a "nursery bed" (a spare patch of soil) or in pots outdoors. Keep them watered during the summer heat.

The Autumn Move:
In September or October, dig up your young plants and move them to their final flowering position (e.g., move Wallflowers and Forget-me-nots into the beds where your tulips are planted). This allows them to settle in before winter.