The Winter Seed Sowing Flower Box

Anchusa Blue Angel

A genuinely true blue — not purple-blue, not violet-blue, but an intense, saturated, ultramarine blue of extraordinary clarity that stops visitors in the garden and draws bees from a distance, produced on a compact, drought-tolerant, low-maintenance plant that thrives precisely where most others struggle

Cobaea scandens Purple

The Cup and Saucer Vine — a Mexican perennial grown as an annual in UK gardens, capable of reaching 6m in a single season, bearing large fragrant bell-shaped flowers that open lime-green and age through lilac to rich purple, each sitting in a ruffled green calyx saucer like a Victorian china set

Bells of Ireland

The arrangement plant that earns its place not through flower colour but through structure — tall spires of vivid apple-green bell-shaped calyces stacked along upright stems, each one housing a tiny fragrant white flower, making every other colour in a bouquet appear more vivid by providing the most architecturally interesting green available from any annual in the cutting garden.

Mesembryanthemum Harlequin

The solar-tracking neon carpet -- a Half-Hardy Annual succulent from South African coastal deserts producing glistening ice-crystal leaves and neon flowers in shocking pink, electric orange, peachy apricot, and sunny yellow that open only in direct sunlight, tracking the sun across the sky; surface sow on gritty compost at 18-21°C; plant out June in the fullest sun available; do NOT overwater (true desert succulent); rockeries, gravel, walls, containers in the hottest driest spot

Achillea Marshmallow

The most generous and most abundantly flowering of the white ptarmica achilleas — tall, vigorous, and smothered from June to September in large, fully double, pure white pompom flowers that are larger and more freely produced than 'Ballerina', with the same luminous white quality and the same outstanding value to pollinators and the cutting garden alike.

Gaura 'The Bride'

The white whirling butterflies — pure white starry flowers on 60–90cm arching wands in constant gentle motion from June to the first autumn frosts; a Hardy Perennial H4 with a deep taproot providing exceptional drought tolerance; surface sow in light at a consistent 20°C; no deadheading needed; the universal white companion that makes every other colour look better; the Chelsea Chop optional for a bushier August flush

Sweet Pea Old Spice Starry Night

The darkest, most fragrant sweet pea — Hardy Annual H3; Grandiflora type; Old Spice series; velvety bi-colours of deep violet, indigo, maroon and purple; double the fragrance of Spencer types; more heat tolerant than Spencers (continues when others fade); sow Oct–Nov (best) cold frame or Jan–Mar at 15°C; pick every 2–3 days; pair with white companions (Ammi Majus, Nicotiana) to reveal the dark colours; TOXICITY: all parts mildly toxic

Phlox Blushing Bride

The Fleuroselect-winning bridal phlox -- Hardy Annual H3 producing masses of large white star-shaped flowers with a delicate cherry-pink blush eye on 35-40cm stems; subtle honey-like scent; seeds need COMPLETE DARKNESS to germinate (cover with cardboard over tray); 18-20°C; 10-21 days; move to bright light immediately at emergence; pinch out growing tip at 10cm for bushy plants; plant out May-June; deadhead for continuous July-October display; outstanding cut flower for posies, jam jars, and bridal arrangements