"Sacha" wrote in message
...
On 2009-05-05 07:16:46 +0100, bob said:


As pretty as they can sometimes be, primulas seem to pop up everywhere
in my garden almost as invasively as weeds, yet after a cursory web
search I read quite a bit of advice about digging them up after
flowering, dividing them and then replanting. This seems quite an
elaborate procedure for something that survives all to happily without
any intervention from me. Am I'm missing something?

Can anyone advise. Just leave them be? Can one trim of the leaves
before they start to yellow and become unsightly?

thanks for any help.

They can become less floriferous if overcrowded, though nobody has told
our local wild primroses that, thank goodness! That's why you read the
advice on dividing them and of course, it increases your stock of a
particular plant. Don't take off the leaves because they're what nourish
the roots of the plant. If you find you have too many, you could wait
for them to finish flowering, then dig them up and pot them. Then you
could either give them to friends or to local fairs and fetes for plant
stalls.
--
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Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
Exotic plants, shrubs & perennials
South Devon


I agree entirely with Sacha, but would add that Primula Leaf Spot is now a
persistent problem with most of the primula tribe. This causes leaf
yellowing, but the spotting is usually evident. If you see leaves marked in
this way, it would be worth while removing them. If the leaf spot is left
unchecked, it generally weakens the plant - even our robust native primrose.

Spider