The Comeback of Biennial Flowers: Why Patience Pays Off in Your Garden
Once a staple in our grandparents’ gardens, many biennial flowers quietly faded into obscurity over the past few decades. Their slow-growing nature simply couldn’t compete with the fast, flashy appeal of supermarket bouquets and convenience-store blooms. Foxgloves, Sweet Williams, Honesty, Wallflowers, Daucus, and Hesperis were often replaced by garishly wrapped Gerberas or whatever was on special near the tills. But here’s the good news: these timeless beauties are making a big comeback — and this time, we mean business.
So, what exactly are Biennial flowers?
Biennials are a unique category of plants that require a bit of patience. They’re typically sown in early summer — think June or July. For the rest of that first year, they quietly establish themselves, focusing on root growth while producing only modest foliage above ground. Then, come early spring the following year, they burst into action, often flowering well before your annuals are even thinking about it.
Now, you might be thinking: “A whole year before they bloom? That’s too long!” And sure, in a world of next-day delivery and instant everything, that’s a fair first reaction. But here’s the truth: that mindset is worth rethinking.
In my own garden — the Higgledy Garden — I grow everything from seed. Bulbs aren’t really my style. I’m after a long, generous flowering season, and biennials are key to that. While annuals give their all from June through to the first frosts in November (I usually stop cutting flowers around Armistice Day and let the rest go to seed for the finches), they still don’t get going until early summer.
That’s where biennials shine. These hardy workhorses start flowering as early as March and keep going strong — effortlessly bridging the gap until the annuals take over. That’s around 245 days of blooms. Incidentally, that’s also the gestation period of a moose — but in flower terms, it’s a full season of beauty and joy.
So don’t overlook biennials. With a little patience and planning, they’ll reward you with some of the earliest — and loveliest — flowers of the year.
How (and Why) I Sow Biennials in the Higgledy Garden
In the Higgledy Garden, I sow my biennials in June and July. While it’s perfectly fine to sow them directly into well-prepared, weed-free soil, I usually prefer using pots or modules — and for good reason. (This season I shall be growing them all direct, as an experiment.)
Why Pots or Modules?
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Less Weeding: Direct sowing means you’ll be weeding around fragile seedlings for weeks, which is no one’s idea of fun.
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Efficient Watering: It’s far easier — and more water-wise — to manage trays than to irrigate whole rows in the ground.
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Planting Precision: Growing in modules gives you total control over where your plants go when it’s time to plant out.
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Space Savvy: By the time the seedlings are ready to move into the garden in September, your annuals will be winding down — allowing you to reuse the same space and avoid empty beds over winter.
At the Higgledy Seed Emporium, every biennial has been handpicked for its performance in a vase — and most lean toward the delightfully old-fashioned end of the spectrum.
I use a peat-free compost (Melcourt is my go-to), sow the seeds into trays, and keep them outside, not in a greenhouse — summer heat under glass can scorch young seedlings. Just keep them watered and happy until they’re ready to plant out before the autumn equinox (around September 21st). It’s vital they get this late-summer/autumn window to stretch their roots and settle in before winter.
If you prefer, and you have the space, you can sow them direct. I sow into straight drills about a foot apart. Cover the seeds fairly lightly with soil or compost and make sure the bed doesn’t totally dry out while the little beasties are getting themselves established.
Important Tip:
Foxglove seeds need light to germinate, so don’t cover them — sow on the surface and keep moist.
Top Biennials for the Cutting Patch
Here are a few of my absolute favourites from the Higgledy Seed Emporium — all reliable, vase-worthy, and full of charm:
🌕 Honesty (Lunaria)
So named for its moon-like, silvery seed discs. The blooms bring a burst of colour just when the garden’s still rubbing its eyes from winter. They last well over a week in the vase and will happily self-seed. Or, collect the pods yourself and sow them in pots for more planting control (and a small rebellion against chaos theory).
🦊 Foxgloves
The white-flowered ‘Alba’ is a must-have for any home florist. I also grow the heritage variety ‘Excelsior’ — tall, speckled spires in creamy pinks and purples. New to the Emporium is the much-loved ‘Apricot’, which is proving popular among seasoned Higgledy growers.
🌙 Hesperis
Named after the mythical evening nymphs, Hesperis (also called Sweet Rocket) releases its sweet scent as dusk falls. It’s simple, reliable, easy to grow, and — frankly — a bit of a heart-stealer. One of my all-time favourites.
🌸 Sweet William
Sweet Williams just rock. There’s really no other way to put it. They smell incredible, look fantastic, and are all-round good eggs — charming, dependable, and full of character. Like all biennials, they’re wonderfully easy to grow from seed, making them a solid choice whether you’re new to gardening or a seasoned petal wrangler.
The ‘Auricula Eyed’ variety is a timeless favourite — proper old-school elegance. For something with modern flair, ‘Alba’ (pure white) and ‘Nigricans’ (deep, moody maroon) are both popular with contemporary florists — très à la mode, as they say. And for a no-nonsense blast of colour, the ‘Higgledy Mix’ offers a vibrant selection of single-coloured Sweet Williams — a reliable choice that always delivers.
🌼 Wallflowers
Wallflowers are the unsung heroes of the spring cutting patch. Unpretentious, gorgeously scented, and wonderfully generous — they’ve got that quiet, classic charm that doesn’t shout for attention but always steals the show. I grow the classic ‘Ivory White’, the mellow mustardy tones of ‘Cloth of Gold’, and a Higgledy Mix for a good old-fashioned jumble of colour. They’re brilliant in the vase and pair beautifully with tulips or honesty for a proper “cottage garden in a jar” vibe.
Sow them in June or July, just like your other biennials, and plant them out before the autumn equinox. They’ll sit patiently through winter, then burst into bloom early in the spring when most of the garden is still hitting snooze.
Wallflowers are tough, fragrant, and packed with vintage soul. If you’re not growing them, you’re missing a trick (and a lot of compliments).
Give biennials a go. They may ask for a little patience, but they’ll reward you with early blooms, structure in your patch, and a vase full of vintage charm.
It’s biennial seed sowing time! For a cutting garden full of blooms next spring, we highly recommend sowing biennials now through July. They grow quietly this year, overwinter, then burst into flower from April to June — bringing colour, scent, and nectar for bees and butterflies.
This year’s bundle includes tall spires of Foxglove ‘Apricot’ and ‘Excelsior’, sweetly scented Hesperis in purple and white, vibrant Sweet William ‘Auricula-eyed’, and reliable Wallflowers ‘Vulcan’, ‘Ivory White’, and ‘Cloth of Gold’ — perfect with tulips. You’ll also get Honesty, beloved by pollinators and perfect for seedheads, plus Higgledy Anne’s favourite: glorious Canterbury Bells.
10 varieties — now with 25% off.
Here’s a link to the biennial bundle in the shop. :)
Kindest regards
Higgers and Flash. x