Love-in-a-mist Miss Jekyll Alba Seeds - Nigella damascena

Nigella 'Miss Jekyll Alba', also known as Nigella damascena, bears from spring to summer, candid white flowers, marvellous in their simplicity and finesse, which seem to float on airy foliage. The flowers then turn into original fruit in the form of round, papery capsules embellished with a kind of 'hair'. You can sow this delightful variety directly, like stardust, in rock gardens or in sunny flower beds, without fear of disturbing neighbouring plants. It makes for an excellent flower for bouquets. Foliage, flowers, fruit: everything is decorative with this easy-to-grow plant!

Nigella damascena is an annual plant of the buttercup family (Renonculaceae) native to the Near East. In the wild, it grows in uncultivated, rocky areas, roadsides, and in the most difficult of soils. It is an annual plant whose life span does not exceed a few months, but which spontaneously and generously self-seeds. Very hardy and fast-growing, this plant spends the winter as a seedling and in spring forms a beautiful clump of feathery foliage, like that of fennel, and grows up to 50 cm high and 20 to 30 cm wide. The 'Miss Jekyll Alba' variety also named 'Miss Jekyll White' is cultivated for its simple, immaculate white flowers. Flowering takes place from May to August, depending on when the seeds were sown. Its beautiful flowers feature tapered petals, surrounded by a lace collar and are nestled in the foliage. They are about 3 cm in diameter and develop into round, pinkish brown capsules that become silky when mature and contain a large quantity of small black seeds. These seeds germinate very easily in light soil.

Being one of the plants commonly cultivated in monastic gardens, the Damascus nigella, so aptly named by the English 'Love-in-a-mist', is one of the easiest plants to grow in well-drained soils. It is charming and perfect everywhere and goes well with all the other plants: in natural gardens, rock gardens, perennial beds, where it contrasts beautifully with coarse textured plants. It can also be combined with shrub roses, old roses, bushes or botanical roses. Love-in-a-mist colonizes open spaces in record time and can quickly create a colourful, rural setting with Lady phacelia, Honeywort, sainfoins, Californian poppies, perennial flax, rosemary, wild chicory or everlasting sweet pea...