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A lovely little alpine annual which will self seed happily in the right spot. It forms an upright branching base of grey-green leaves and produces sprays of little white (but occasionally pale blue) flowers that look like forget-me-nots throughout the summer. A native of dry open sites in South Western Europe it is quite tolerant of alkaline soils and can cope with drought. Plant it near the front of a mixed border or pot it up into a container for the patio.

• Garden care: Watch out for slugs and snails and don't remove all the spent flowers if you want the seeds to develop.