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Oxlip

Primula elatior

Also called True oxlip

Oxlip
Photo: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0

Oxlip is a hardy European woodland and meadow perennial with clusters of pale yellow, fragrant spring flowers. It grows best in cool, moist, slightly alkaline soil in a sheltered spot, with partial shade to full sun.

Family
Primulaceae (Primul family)
Grows as
Perennial
Light
Full sun
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist, especially in spring and summer, and avoid waterlogging.
Soil
Moist, humus-rich, fertile soil, neutral to slightly alkaline.
Temperature
Hardy to around -20 °C; thrives in cool temperate conditions.
How easy
Easy
Native range
Europe
Climate
temperate

About

Primula elatior, the oxlip (or true oxlip), is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae, native to nutrient-poor and calcium-rich damp woods and meadows throughout Europe, with northern borders in Denmark and southern parts of Sweden, eastwards to the Altai Mountains and on the Kola Peninsula in Russia, and westwards in the British Isles.

How to grow it

Primula elatior is cultivated as a garden plant. It may be used as bedding, grown from seed as a biennial, and discarded after flowering. It may be used in informal settings such as wildflower meadows. It prefers a sheltered position in full sun with moist soil. It has won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

Other Primula plants

Moonlight Primrose · Auricula · Bulley's Primrose · Buttonhead Primrose · Primula chionantha · Primula cockburniana · Drumstick Primrose · Tibetan Cowslip · Primula frondosa · Japanese primrose · Primula kisoana · Baby Primrose

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Primula elatior by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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