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Growing and Caring for Primroses

Primula

March 3, 1999
I bought some beautiful primrose plants already in bloom and would like to know how to plant and care for them, both in a container environment on my sunporch and outside.
I live in Tennessee (Zones 6 and 7). Please help--I'm a novice to the gardening world and need all the advice I can get. Thank you in advance for all your help.

Primroses (Primula) provide you with early spring blooms in almost every color of the rainbow. They prefer cool temperatures, a rich humus soil (lots of compost and leaf mold) and partial shade. They appreciate full sun in the spring, but must have semi shade as the temperatures warm. They are quite tolerant of being transplanted, even when they are in bloom. Newly purchased plants may be set into the garden in early spring. Older plants may be divided and transplanted right after they are finished blooming. They should be planted in a cool, partly shady area in the garden with rich, well draining, slightly acid soil (pH 6.5). Primroses need to be planted so that their crown is right at soil level, and at least six inches apart. Primroses may be grown indoors if you are able to provide them with cool night temperatures of 50-60 degrees F., high humidity, filtered sun and moist soil. Daytime temperatures must remain below 80 degrees. When they have finished blooming in the house it is best to plant them directly into the garden, or summer them outdoors in their pots and moved back to the house at the end of the season.

Varieties of Primroses

The list of Primrose varieties is quite extensive, prohibiting me from listing all of them, however here is a list of the most popular types. Check with your nursery for actual hardiness of different varieties.

Japanese Primrose (Primula japonica) (zone 5) produces red, white or purple flowers on stalks which grow up to 40 inches tall. This variety needs considerable moisture to survive.
Cowslip Primrose (Primula veris) (hardy) produces 1-2 inch fragrant yellow flowers in clusters atop 6-12 inch stems. They are well suited for harsh, cold weather. Cowslips multiply rapidly through self seeding, and should be divided every other year after they have finished blooming.
English Primrose (Primula vulgaris) (zone 5) are heavy bloomers, producing 2-3 single flowers on each stalk. They are available in a wide assortment of colors.
Polyanthus Primroses (Primula polyanthus) (zone 3) are often erroneously called English Primroses. They are generally all hybrids of different varieties producing large clusters of flowers atop one foot stems. They are available in a large variety of colors, and are well suited to growing in planters. An excellent accent for your bulb garden or for mass plantings of color. Polyanthus Primroses will often bloom again in the fall if the plants are cut back to half their size right after the spring bloom.
Chinese Primroses (Primula sinensis) (zone 10) are somewhat tender perennials, and as such are best suited as a potted plant indoors. The star shaped, white, pink, lavender or coral flowers are clustered on 8 inch stalks.
Julianna Primrose (Primula juliae) (zone 5) is a group of hybrids producing some of the earliest bloom. They are low growing and may produce either singles or clustered flowers.
Moonlight Primrose (Primula alpicola) (zone 5) waits until summer to show it's fragrant flowers. The blooms are bell shaped on 18 inch stems, and are usually yellow, however they are sometimes found with white or purple flowers.
Fairy Primrose (Primula malacoides) (zones 8-10) produces small leaves on long stalks and numerous foot tall stalks of flowers.
German Primrose (primula obconica) (zones 8-10) is a large, 12 inch tall plant with 10 inch round leaves. The 1 inch flowers are mostly shades of red.

Primrose from seeds

The seeds of Primroses are very tiny. They should be sown in a tray in early spring on a seedbed of moist peat moss which is layered over sterile potting soil. The tray must then be chilled in the refrigerator for 3-4 weeks, after which it must be kept at 70 degrees F. for germination, which takes from 3-6 weeks. The seeds need light to germinate, so do not cover them with soil, but a sheet of clear plastic or glass placed over the tray will help to retain the moisture until the seeds sprout at which time the cover sheet should be removed. Transplant the seedlings to individual pots when they are two inches tall. They will be ready to bloom the following spring.

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