Primula margotae Guinevere - Primrose

The Primula 'Guinevere' is an ancient variety of hybrid primrose, delicate and contrasting, a pure marvel in spring. From the first beautiful days, it unfolds slender stems carrying clusters of simple and delightful flowers, in a fairly vivid lilac pink with a yellow centre, so fresh above a dark and shiny foliage, initially tinged with bronze and purple, becoming very dark green. This small creeping perennial is easy to grow in moist soil, in borders, damp rockeries and woodlands, planted in humus-rich and moist soil.

The Primula x margotae 'Guinevere' ('Garryard Guinevere') is a horticultural creation from the 1930s, resulting from the cross-breeding of various primroses from the juliae section. Their ancestor, the Primula juliae, is a very small rhizomatous wild species native to the Caucasus characterized by excellent hardiness, a very neat habit and very beautiful dark and shiny foliage. Primroses belong to the primrose family.

The beautiful foliage of 'Guinevere' develops in small basal rosettes, emerging from the underground rhizome, to form a slowly spreading carpet. The leaves, usually evergreen, are wide, wavy and glossy, initially bronze green with purple reflections, then very dark green. In May, short purple floral stems appear, 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8in) tall, bearing clusters of slightly toothed petals, a fairly bright light pink, standing out wonderfully against the dark foliage.

The 'Guinevere' primrose will particularly thrive in humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil, conditions that can be found in damp rockeries or rocky areas bordering a small waterfall. In border plantings or in containers on a balcony, this plant combines well with companion plants of pink or white colours, hostas, forget-me-nots, peonies, or large comfreys. Primroses are perfect in borders, low-growing beds under leafy cover, rockeries and short grass meadows, among snowdrops and violets.

The primroses in our gardens are almost all perennials, sometimes annuals and rarely woody. Their cultivation can be very easy or, on the contrary, very difficult. Often the climate is a determining factor for their survival; some species die if the summer temperature is too high, others if the winter is too humid or too cold, etc. It is a complex genus, which we have been cultivating for 25 years, but to understand the very different ways of living of all the rare species, one must spend a lot of time with them and know that they do not forgive any mistakes. Those in this catalogue do not all offer the same degree of difficulty, but they can all be cultivated by a careful amateur. Some are easy to grow, others less so. It's up to you to choose the ones you think you can master!