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Deep in their roots,
All flowers keep the light.
Theodore Roethke
“What are you doing here?” I shook my head and laughed as I headed for my car on a grey morning in mid-December. My eye had been drawn to a cheery circlet of color. (Yes, I talk to my plants. Let’s get that confession out of the way.) Rich, creamy white with centers of deep yellow, the primroses were blooming. Here was one, there another – everywhere they were supposed to be, but surely they weren’t supposed to be blooming in December! Snuggled close to the ground, the primroses grinned back at me, resplendent in their summer finery.
Primulaceae, the name of this plant family, is from the Latin primus, meaning first. From the Italian fior di prima verae, “the first flower of spring,” the name evolved into primaverola, then into the French primevere, and finally, our English “primrose.” The European species of Primula flower early in the spring; those that grow wild in the mountains of North America and Asia wait until late spring or early summer, when the snow has melted. Wild Primula species are found throughout the temperate areas of the Northern Hemisphere, as well as in remote places on earth, from the tundra to the tropical rain forest.
When I first planted my primroses (Primula vulgaris), a few dozen left over from a 2002 Northwest Flower and Garden Show display garden, I set them out at the base of the rockery and other spots nearby that cried out for a bit of color. Although I had been a Washington State University Master Gardener for two years, I knew nothing about primroses. (Truth be told, I knew nothing about a great many plants, but that’s what makes being a WSU Master Gardener so much fun – the learning never stops.) I was so taken with them that the concept of “right plant, right place” didn’t even enter my mind. Since the rockery faces south, come summer, many of the little beauties expired in too much heat and dry weather.
A few hardy plants hung in there, although a lot less cheerfully, as I read and discovered that primroses are shade and moisture loving plants. No wonder they find late December so to their liking! Needless to say, my primroses were quickly transplanted, and as evidenced by their continued blooming, they are now quite content.
Here is what Vita Sackville-West had to say about Primula. “The vast family of primulas contains some of the loveliest and most reliable of plants, ranging from the pale primrose of our woods to the tall Asiatics and their hybrids…Generally speaking, this class or group enjoys a moist soil and a shady place; and as there is a constant demand for plants that will thrive in shade, awkward to satisfy, the primulas will be found very useful as well as beautiful.”
I was feeling quite smug and proud of my success with these lovely plants. Then,
in mid-January, racks of them appeared outside stores. In many colors, too.
Suddenly, my plants didn’t seem quite so special. But, then it occurred
to me – mine were truly primus – they were here first.
Hortsense: Managing plant problems with Integrated Pest Management
