In message ,
Roger Tonkin writes
My local mobile post office man threw this one at me today.

He has a wooded area, mainly of cob nuts, with a carpet of bluebells
underneath. He would like to plant some contrasting flowers (red and
yellow/white) to flower with the bluebells. In spring, the canopy is
quite thin, but gets thicker during the summer, but still has light
coming through. At least 6" of the soil is just leaf mould.

What would anyone suggest?

Among the common flowers of woodland floors are Allium ursinum (ramsons)
and Anemone nemorosa (wood anemone). The former is white, the latter is
usually white; sometimes pink or blue. I forget the precise flowering
times, but IIRC the Anemone flowers well in advance of bluebells.

There is a yellow anemone (Anemone ranunculoides); the hybrid between
this and Anemone nemorosa is cream-flowered.

There are white and pink bluebells - even white and pink forms of the
native bluebell.

Another pink-flowered plant is Claytonia siberica (pink purslane).

Red is hard. Most spring flowering plants are in the white to yellow or
blue spectrum.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley