The King John's Nursery Shop 

The huge range of products in the shop include top-quality brands such as Hampshire Garden Craft, Jakoti, Nutscene, Silky Fox, Emma Bridgewater, Showa, Franchi, okatsuni, Ecover and flights of fancy, not to mention many local producers and other goods stocked for their environmental and fair-trade credentials. 

Stone urns by Hampshire garden craft and locally made terracotta pots to high quality tools by Niwaki, Sneerbor and Nutscene.   Plant supports made on site and firepits by Kadai, we have a great range of unique brands. 

Greetings cards by contemporary and mid-century Sussex artists as well as art and crafts by talented local creators. 

Soaps, Candles, vases and houseplants as well as all other sorts of great ideas for the house and a perfect place to find a gift. Nature themed gifts and a childrens area too. 

And for the lover of the past – A range of always changing vintage finds from staddle stones to glass bottles, top hats and a birds nest, your never quite sure what you might find when you walk in the door.

A small nursery, but at King John’s we try to grow as many of the plants as we can on site, if we can’t keep up we buy in little plants from British propagators to grow on.

We have been peat free since we started the nursery and try not to use any chemicals. I have always had a passion for wild flowers and have always grown quite a few in the nursery, it’s been great over the last few years to see customers embrace more and more to grow in their gardens.

We mainly grow herbaceous perennials and try to find or grow classic garden varieties that are often missed by other nurseries or garden centres. As we grow in small numbers it is really hard to keep a plant list as what’s available just changes too quickly.

We also have a range of shrubs, bedding plants, herbs, veg and annuals for sale.

As I say I don’t have a plant list of available plants but here are a few favourites and great garden plants I grow every year (taken from my list of plant labels of 500 plants), it just gives a flavour of the sorts of plants I love.

• Amsonia Hubrichtii - Has very finely cut, willow-like leaves along entire length of stem, topped with clusters of narrow indigo-blue buds, opening pale, grey-blue starry flowers in June. Intense golden, butter-yellow autumn colour.
• Angelica archangelica - A robust mid green angelica with architectural flowers. 2m tall in sun/partial. a natural sweetener and great cut. Perennial sometimes monocarpic.
• Anthemis Cupiana - An evergreen perennial forming a dense matt of fine silvery foliage. In sun produced large daisy flowers. Well drained.
• Anthriscus ravenswing - A crimson black leaved cow parsley perennial and wonderful foil in the border. 1.8m, sun / partial.
• Aster Divaricatus: The white wood aster is easy to grow, mildew free with delicate black stems which finish with many, long lasting
• Aster Little Carlow: Pretty violet daisies that form a mass of colour in late summer above a small mound of midgreen leaves. 90cm tall, well-drained soil in sun/ps.
• Bacopa Snowflake: Wonderful annual bedding plant perfect for pots and baskets. dripping with white flowers all summer until the fir
• Buglossoides purpurocaerulea: A creeping perennial, good for ground cover in sun/partial shade. Purple buds open to gentian blue flowers. Grows 60cm tall.
• Camassia Caerulea: A dark blue camassia that flowers in June. Perfect in the middle of the border or naturalising in a meadow. It is also great in clay soil, 70cm high.
• Cardamine Bulbifera: A rare wildflower native to woods in the High Weald. Pale pink trumpet flowers, 60cm tall. Bulbils on stem. Partial shade.
• Cardamine Quinquifolia: Masses of pink flowers on this quick to spread lady’s smock. Flowering in spring a popular groundcover plant for partial shade. 20cm tall.
• Cephalaria gigantica: A very large plant with pale yellow/cream pincushion flowers. Give room in full sun to get 2mx2m. Wonderful statement plant.
• Chasmanthium latifolium: North American wild oats, a deciduous spreading grass with pendant, flattened spikelets of flowers. 1m tall in sun / partial shade.
• Cirsium Rivale: Intense burgundy thistle like flowers sits on tall upright stems. Flowers in mid to late summer. Grows to 90cm high
• Darmera peltata: The umbrella plant has tall stems in spring topped with flat heads of pale pink flowers, and huge lobed leaves. Damp
• Dianthus flashing lights: Excellent for rockery, container or front of border, Flashing Lights has masses of gleaming red flowers on neat mats of dark green foliage. One of the easiest Dianthus to grow and very long flowering.
• Dianthus Carthusianorum:  A tall pink with grey foliage and long stems topped with masses of small pink / reddish magenta flws. 65cm tall
• Disporum Green giant: An elegant evergreen shade lover, upright stems gently arch at the top, and bear creamy-green, fragrant, nodding bell flowers in spring. Partial shade, 120cm.
• Epimedium Amber queen: A variety with masses of yellow / orange flowers over heavily mottled foliage. One of the longest flowering hybrid
• Erigeron Karvensis Proffusion: White daisy flowers with a pink tinge as they age. Mexican daisies are perfect self-seeded in paving and steps. Grows 20cm high in Full sun.
• Euphorbia wulfenii Margary Fish: A very popular perennial/sub-shrub with blue/grey foliage. This variety was selected by Margery Fish at East Lambrook gardens for its impressive strong yellow flower
• Euphorbia Glitz: An unusual euphorbia that doesn’t stop flowering all summer with masses of little white petals. Fantastic in pots. Sun / partial shade. 20cm.
• Ferula communis: Giant fennel is a dramatic architectural plant for well drained, full sun and a bit of protection. Huge feathery leaves and yellow flws, 2.5-4m.
• Galum Odoratum: Sweet woodruff is a native woodland plant, carpeting, mid-green leaves. Stary white flowers appear from late spring. 30cm high.
• Geranium Rozanne: An outstanding cultivar with large mauve blue flowers appearing through lush foliage. A very long season and grows to around 60cm high.
• Geranium Cloud nine: A vigorous, meadow cranesbill relative, pale violet double flowers, maybe best double geranium so far! 75cm x 75cm, sun / partial. May - Sep.
• Geranium pha. Lisa: A gorgeous patterned leaf on this phaeum and maroon flowers bringing interest to those difficult areas, 50cm high, shade/sun.
• Geranium Phaeum ‘Walkure’: Wide delicately coloured lavender blue flowers with pale flowers. A demure beauty ideal for moist, shady corners.
• Geum Totally tangerine: A hugely popular plant and nonstop flowerer. Water avens are great for a damp spot, easy to maintain with lots of colour. 50cm, partial.
• Helenium Rubinzwerg: A shorter helenium for a windier spot. To 90cm tall. Rich, dark mahogany petals and a brown boss, yellow anthers. Sun, July - Sep, any soil. AGM.
• Helianthus lemon queen: Fantastic very tall with hundreds of lemon yellow, disk flowers. Sun, 2m high. A little shelter appreciated.
• Hemerocallis Corky:  A small and dainty daylily, with the appearance of a species. Pale yellow with a bronze reverse. 60cm tall.
• Hemerocalis Strutters ball: A mid-season day lily with blooms of large, rich purple trumpets, with a yellow throat in July - August. 50cm tall for sun

• Hermodactylus Tuberosus: The widow iris flowers early in spring, with graceful black and green flowers above slender strap leaves. Beautiful plant, 25cm, sun.
• Hosta Sum and Substance: A huge hosta that enjoys full sun. It sets off dark and bronze leaved plants, thick leaves make it less popular with slugs. Lavender flowers.
• Hosta Frances Williams: One of the most popular hostas ever produced. Large puckered var. blue / green leaves with a green / yellow margin. 120cm, shade / partial
• Jasmine Clotted cream: A beautiful climber with twining light green stems and leaves and highly scented cream flowers, grow with a little protection.
• Knautia Macedonia: A wonderful perennial of the scabious family. Easy to grow, grey green leaves give rise to pin cushion flowers of deep wine red. 1m high.
• Leucanthemum Becky:  A lovely shasta daisy, the only one Beth Chatto loved, with chalky white petals. Perfect in sun or partial shade, July - Sep, growing 1.2m high.
• Libertia Grandiflora: Clump forming perennial with strap leaves producing wands with clusters of white flowers at the ends. Easy, 1m, sun or partial shade.
• Lysimachia Cletheroides:  Wonderful kinked spires of white flowers on this grey/green leaved perenial. Enjoys full sun at will reach 1m high.
• Matteuccia struthiopteris: Fantastic for waterside planting, the shuttlecock fern has wonderful erect fronds that become almost tree like with age. 1.5m tall.
• Melianthus Major: This South African has large grey, dramatic leaves that smell of honey / peanut butter. A great foliage plant. Sun, 2.5m tall if protected.
• Nepeta blue wonder: Superb small catmint perfect for containers, blue flws larger and richer than many others. 30cm, sun.
• Orlaya Grandiflora: A stunning umbefellia known as white lace flower. A hardy annual grown often as a cut flower and border filler, 80cm, sun, may self-seed.
• Pelagonium Ivy velvet: The gorgeous double deep red blooms on this trailing ivy pelargonium keep flowering all summer long. Perfect for baskets or pots.
• Pelargonium Oderata rose: A scented pelargonium with leaves with rose and two tone pink flowers. Around 40cm tall, perfect in pots.
• Persicaria purple fantasy: A wonderful foliage plant with extraordinary mark foliage, vigorous, great in shady corners and pots. 60cm sun / shade
• Persicaria Orange field: A particularly lovely variety bearing delicate spikes of orange - pink flowers, oval mid-green leaves. July - Sep, 1.2m tall, full sun / partial.
• Pimpernella Major rosea: feather like leaflets of bright green below umbels of soft lacy pink flowers. Sun or partial shade, 50cm tall.
• Polygonatum Verticillatum: The whorled solomons seal gets its name from its narrow leaves. late spring tubular flowers with a green edge appear. 80cm, partial.
• Potentilla Monarchs velvet: With silvered strawberry like foliage and bicoloured red and deep velvet centred flowers, this is a stunning long lived perennial. 60cm tall, sun.
• Pulmonaria Opal: A wonderful low growing perennial for sun or shade. In spring pink buds open into light blue flowers. Leaves spotted with silver.
• Rosa Raubritter: A charming and unique shrub rose, large clusters of rounded, cupped pink flowers, slight fragrance and a good choice when allowed to trail.
• Salvia caradonna: Wonderful hardy perennial with spires of violet purple flowers and dark stems. Brilliant front border, 50cm, sun.
• Salvia African sky: This woody perennial produces masses of mauve-blue flowers over a very long period. Drought tolerant. 80cm high.
• Salvia Uliginosa: Bog sage is far pretty than its name implies! Pale blue flowers held on stems up to 1.5m high. Warm sunny site that stays moist.
• Sanguisorba Cangshan cranberry: Dark red - pink flowers on tall wiry stems, a wonderful see through effect for mid border. Flowers Aug - Oct. 2m tall, sun / partial.
• Sanicula Europaea: ‘He who has sanicle needs neither physician nor surgeon’. A native of light/ moist soil and partial shade, flowers of white spheres. 60cm.
• Saxifrage Fortunii: A perennial growing to 40cm in height, with fleshy rounded leaves often reddish beneath. White star shaped flowers in late summer.
• Scilla Peruviana: The Portugese squill, well drained, full sun and produces dense heads of up to 100 lilac/blue, star shaped flowers in May/June. 20cm.
• Semi aquilegia escalarta: A close relative of aquilegia with very delicate foliage and pink nodding flowers without spurs. Partial shade, 20cm tall.
• Solanum laxum album: Vigorous climber with mid green leaves and star shaped white flowers, yellow eye summer - autumn. Warm South or West wall, H4, sun
• Speiranthes Convallaroides: Evergreen perennial for shade, perfect groundcover in a woodland garden. Star shaped white flowers. 30cm tall, shade.
• Thalictrum Elin: One of the tallest meadow rues with lacy blue/green foliage growing to 2.4m high. Sprays of soft lavender flowers with yellow stamens.
• Thalictrum Hewitts double: Growing to 1.5m high with long lasting double pink flowers and delicate aquilegia like foliage in blue/green. Part shade.
• Thalictrum Delavayi album: Delicate sprays of white flowers above bright green aquilegia like foliage. 1.2m high, sun or light shade.
• Thalictrum Splendide: A lacy mass of foliage with tall, burgundy stalks bearing clouds of lavender mauve flowers. Like little pink droplets. 75cm tall, partial.
• Thymus Jekka: Low growing thyme with large pale purpley pink flowers, raised at Jekka’s herb garden. Growing to 10cm high it has a good culinary flavour.
• Tracheleospurnum Jasminoides: Wonderful evergreen, twining, woody climber with jasmine like white flowers in midsummer and deep green leaves. 9m slowly.
• Trogopogon Porrifolius: Salsify is a stunning self seeder and great architecturally. Tall fleshy grey stems produce flat lilac flowers, 1m tall, sun.
• Valarian Officianalis: Perennial, native, umbefellier growing to 1.5m. The white flower heads with a tinge of pink waft vanilla scents, Great for wildlife.
• Verbascum Cotswold beauty: delightful apricot flowers with beautiful purple stamens, during the summer months. Green leaves beneath the tall flowering stems.
• Viburnum Opulus sterile: A lovely medium sized, deciduous shrub with rounded heads of pure white flowers in May - June. Sun / partial,2.4m