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German Primrose

Primula obconica, Primulaceae

Sources last read 14 September 2026.

Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.

Also called poison primrose and Primrose.

German Primrose (Primula obconica), the whole plant.
KENPEI, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

German Primrose is toxic

  • Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Toxic to people. Caution: can cause skin allergy. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it. RHS

What the sources say about its care

Light
Full sun, Partial shade
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Water
Moist but well-drained
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%
Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Temperature

How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.

H2 — 1–5°C 1–5 °C
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Soil
Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or Neutral
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to cats
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to dogs
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Harmful to people
Caution: can cause skin allergy. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Routine care

Watering
While growing, water generously and feed weekly with a balanced liquid fertiliser at half strength.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Feeding
While growing, water generously and give a balanced liquid fertiliser at half strength weekly.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Propagation
Seed
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Increase from seed.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pruning
Pruning is not needed.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pests and diseases
Usually free of pests and diseases.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Move something and watch

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Flowers of German Primrose (Primula obconica).
FlowersKENPEI, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

About the plant

Primula obconica commonly referred to as the German Primrose is a species of flowering plant in the family Primulaceae, native to China. It is a short-lived evergreen perennial growing to 40 cm (16 in) tall by 25 cm (10 in) broad, with rosettes of coarse, heart-shaped leaves, and thick stalks bearing umbels of lavender flowers in late winter and early spring.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026

Native range
S. China
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
China
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
China
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Climate
temperate
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Growth form
perennial
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Annual, Herbaceous Perennial; habit erect
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Tufted (evergreen)
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Size
Height 10–12 in
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Height 0.1-0.5 metres; spread 0.1-0.5 metres after 1–2 years
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Flowering
Flowers blue, cream/tan, gold/yellow, orange, pink, purple/lavender, white; blooms in spring, winter
NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Flowers purple in spring and winter; pink in spring and winter
RHS · read 13 September 2026

More of the Primulaceae family

Plants with similar care

Sources

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.