Small native annual with flowers of purple, yellow, white or a combination of these colours. Flowers from May to October and readily self seeds to re-appear year after year.
Other Names: Heartsease, Love-in-Idleness, Kiss-me-Quick
Distribution: Native perennial throughoutBritain.
Habitat: Grows on most soils in grassy areas. Prefers sunny sites.
Description: Height is 15 to 20cm. It flowers throughout the summer from May to October. The flowers are purple, yellow, white or a combination of these colours. The plant will self-seed well. Regular dead-heading will encourage further flowering.
Folklore:The pansy is associated with love, accounting for some of it's other names. Oberon, in A Midsummer Night's Dream, squeezed the juice of heartsease into Titania's eyes in order to make her fall in love with the first person she sees on opening her eyes.
Wildlife: The nectar in the flowers attracts butterflies and bees.
