If you’re looking for something with real presence and a fragrant focus for patio containers, you might want to try growing stock. Prized for their dense clusters of fragrant blooms, most varieties can also be nurtured in the greenhouse as a source of cut flowers, creating bright, sweetly scented indoor displays.

Sometimes called Gillyflowers, these super hardy and sturdy plants are great for containers or gap fillers in the border. Originally grown in the Mediterranean coastal region, interestingly these flowers are part of the Brassicaceae family, which also includes cabbages.

Stock generally blooms from spring to summer and thrives in the sunshine. Soil needs to be moist but well-drained and deadheading is essential. We suggest overwintering the biennial varieties in a protected area, for example a cold frame, or cloche, before planting them out to their flowering position in early spring. Annual stocks will also provide a heady fragrance and these can simply be sown where they are to flower.

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