The benefits of borage

With its brilliant blue starry flowers and charismatic fuzzy stems and leaves, borage is a plant that has plenty of garden appeal. As an added bonus, it looks attractive even before it flowers, particularly when the ‘hairy’ stems and buds are covered in morning dew or rain! It can be eaten, used for medicinal purposes, attracts beneficial insects, deters pests, adds nutrients back into the soil and as one of the most important ingredients of Pimms No.1, you really don’t need many excuses to grow borage.

Hailing from the Mediterranean, it should come as no surprise that prefers well-drained, light, rather poor sandy or chalky soil in a sunny spot. Borage is best grown directly from seed in late spring or early summer in its final position so as not to disturb its long tap root. For an earlier crop, sow