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 Wild Pansy
 Viola tricolor  

Other Names:  Heartsease, Love-in-Idleness, Kiss-me-Quick
Distribution:  Native perennial throughout Britain .
Habitat:  Grows on most soils in grassy areas.  Prefers sunny sites.
Description:  Height is 15 to 20cm.  It flowers throughout the summer from May to October.  The flowers are purple, yellow, white or a combination of these colours.  The plant will self-seed well. Regular dead-heading will encourage further flowering.
Folklore:  The pansy is associated with love, accounting for some of it's other names.  Oberon, in A Midsummer Night's Dream, squeezed the juice of heartsease into Titania's eyes in order to make her fall in love with the first person she sees on opening her eyes.
Wildlife:  The nectar in the flowers attracts butterflies and bees.

 Sowing Instructions for Seeds:  Easy!  All year round, but March to early May or August to September give best results.  Sow seeds in a good quality multi-purpose compost either in a greenhouse, cold frame or outside.  Germination can take from 10 days to 3 months depending on temperature.  When large enough to handle, prick out the seedlings into individual pots. Plant out into final position from late spring onwards.  Planting in autumn will produce slightly earlier flowering than a spring sowing.

Our plants and seeds are of native British origin.