This is the wild ancestor of our garden carrots although its roots are very small in comparison. Growing in sandy places, often close to the sea, this is a delightful biennial with lacey, flat, white flowers that develop into pretty seed heads that last through winter.

Sowing: choose a well-drained sunny site to grow these plants. The seeds need cold to germinate; sow outside in autumn onto a fine-raked seed bed, firming down well for germination the next spring, or sow at any time of year onto a tray of damp compost, put the tray in a fridge for 6-8 weeks then move to somewhere warm until seedlings appear. Transplant seedlings outside when big enough to handle. Water well & keep young plants weeded.

• 100-200 seeds per packet.
• up to 1m tall
• biennial