Wild Garlic (Allium ursinum)

Ramsons, as we’ve always called them in Scotland – carpeting damp woodland with their broad green leaves and starry white flowers come April and May. The whole plant smells deliciously of garlic, and yes, you can eat every bit of it. Plant the bulbs in the green straight away when they arrive, about 10cm apart in groups where you want them to establish – once happy, they’ll self-seed with enthusiasm. Thrives in moist shade under deciduous trees, particularly fond of heavy clay and streamside positions. Dies back completely by midsummer, so perfect for underplanting later-flowering shade plants. A word of warning: in ideal conditions, they can become rather too successful – best kept away from choice woodland plants. Lift and divide established colonies after three to five years if you need more, though they’ll likely have done the job themselves.

Available in bundles of 12 bulbs. Dispatched February-April.