In some years different plants do better than others. In my garden this year is the spring for primulas and today’s crop shows off some of the strong colours that I have been enjoying. Notably the blues are deep and stand out  due to the contrasting yellow eyes. Yes to quote  our former speaker John Bercow  ‘the eyes have it, the eyes have it’.

Why better looking than in previous years?

1. A wet and mild winter has favoured the primulas and produced lush leaves and masses of bloom.
2. The ground I have photographed is largely dedicated to these plants with a few interlopers and weeds.
3. The original stock is a few years old and a process of selection must have been going on without me realising.
4. From last year the soil was in good heart in terms of texture and fertility.
5. I think I tried harder and provided more TLC as I also got good results of primulas in ornamental pots.

What to do after Spring

1. I am not confident that next spring will look as good but I see that copious water has helped so if winter is dry I will augment with mulch or extra water.
2. I will resist the temptation to split the clumps to get lots of new plants. I will mark out a couple of larger favourits and may split off some roots.
3. I will look after the semi-dormant plants as they loose some robustness through summer and give a liquid fertiliser boost before autumn.