Living heritage

Plants with a story attached.

To recognise her remarkable legacy, the Plant Heritage Essex Group are searching for plants that were named after Ellen Willmott, with the aim of locating them at Warley Place for visitors to see. Members of Plant Heritage Essex are also growing such plants to help ensure they continue.

The collection focuses on plants named after Ellen Willmott, Miss Willmott or Warley Place. Some remain familiar; others are uncommon, uncertain or at risk of disappearing from cultivation.

Explore

Plants currently in the collection.

The following plants are already part of the collection, mainly located at Warley Place (indicated with a WP), although some are being held back until they are at a suitable stage for planting.

Galanthus Miss Willmott snowdropIn collection

Galanthus ‘Miss Willmott’

Aethionema armenum Warley hybrid in flowerIn collection

Aethionema armenum Warley hybrid

Rock Cress · Warley Rose
Potentilla nepalensis Miss Willmott in flowerIn collection

Potentilla nepalensis ‘Miss Willmott’

Cinquefoil
Rosa Ellen Willmott flowerIn collection

Rosa ‘Ellen Willmott’

Scabiosa Miss Willmott white flowersIn collection

Scabiosa caucasia ‘Miss Willmott’

Syringa vulgaris Miss Ellen Willmott white flowersIn collection

Syringa vulgaris ‘Miss Ellen Willmott’

Lathyrus odoratus pink sweet pea flowerIn collection

Lathyrus odoratus

Eryngium giganteum Miss Willmott's GhostIn collection

Eryngium giganteum

Miss Willmott’s Ghost
Epimedium Warleyense orange flowersIn collection

Epimedium Warleyense

Alpine Barrenwort

How the collection works

Find. Verify. Grow. Share.

A useful heritage collection needs more than pretty photographs. Each plant can eventually carry provenance, source, accession information, current status and propagation notes.

Record provenance

Where did the plant come from, and how confident are we in its identity?

Build resilience

Growing material in more than one place reduces the risk of losing rare cultivars.

Botanical illustration

Have one of these?

Your garden could contain a missing link.

If you grow a plant with Willmott, Miss Willmott, willmottiae, willmottianum, warleyensis or Warley in its name, get in touch with a photo and whatever provenance you have.