Borage: varieties, growing and uses
Borage turns a corner beside the vegetable garden into a lively spot with nodding, star-shaped flowers. Alongside the familiar blue are white flowers and even a lower-growing perennial relative. Start small: a few well-placed plants look better than an unexpected thicket among your young lettuces.
This image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
- Use
- According to RHS, the flowers of Borago officinalis have a light cucumber-like flavour. Use correctly identified, untreated flowers as a small garnish; do not give a general recommendation to eat all the rough leaves or large quantities of borage.
- Care
- Sow in April or May directly into loose soil in a sunny spot. Borage tolerates light shade but flowers best in sun. Keep the soil moist at the start, not waterlogged. Expect a fairly large plant; for a pot, RHS recommends a minimum width of around 30 cm.
- Harvest and flowering
- Pick fresh flowers shortly before use. For seed, let the flowers develop into hard, dark seeds. Shake ripe seed into a paper bag and label it. Remove unwanted self-sown seedlings early where vegetables need space.
Discover varieties and growth habits
This image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
Blue borage — Borago officinalis
The familiar blue star flowers on a substantial annual.
Use: According to RHS, the flowers of Borago officinalis have a light cucumber-like flavour. Use correctly identified, untreated flowers as a small garnish; do not give a general recommendation to eat all the rough leaves or large quantities of borage.
Use of the species; this selection has been developed around colour, shape or growing characteristics.View growing and harvesting →Place in my gardenThis image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
Alba
The same annual species with white stars.
Use: According to RHS, the flowers of Borago officinalis have a light cucumber-like flavour. Use correctly identified, untreated flowers as a small garnish; do not give a general recommendation to eat all the rough leaves or large quantities of borage.
Use of the species; this selection has been developed around colour, shape or growing characteristics.View growing and harvesting →Place in my garden
This image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
Perennial borage — Borago pygmaea
Lower, creeping perennial relative for a lasting corner.
Use: No separate flavour comparison is established here for this perennial botanical species. The flavour description for ordinary borage must not automatically be applied to it.
Use of the species; this selection has been developed around colour, shape or growing characteristics.View growing and harvesting →Place in my gardenChoose your way to grow
This image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
This image was created with AI from described plant characteristics and growing advice. It shows a possible situation and is not a photograph of a verified cultivar.
Direct sowing in a herb corner
A permanent sowing position keeps spontaneous seedlings identifiable.
- Clear weeds from a small, sunny plot.
- Sow directly in April or May.
- Thin promptly and reserve a few flowers for ripe seed.
For open ground and a natural vegetable garden border.
Borage in a large pot
A pot brings flowers closer to the kitchen or patio.
- Choose a stable pot at least approximately 30 cm wide with drainage.
- Place it in sun.
- Check moisture and turn the pot if needed for balanced growth.
For a patio where you cannot sow in open ground.
Blue, white or a perennial relative
Borago officinalis is familiar annual borage. Alba gives white rather than blue stars. Lower Borago pygmaea is a creeping perennial species, not a small annual variety. Choose annuals for easy sowing and the perennial relative to explore a lasting corner.
Give it its own position
Plants beside paths make flower picking easy. Avoid directly above small vegetables: leaves need more room than delicate flowers suggest. Draw mature plants in My vegetable garden, not just seedling pots. Separate corners also allow seed ripening.
Let bees benefit too
Pick a few flowers for a meal, leaving most on the plant. A clear glass with one blue flower shows shape, but borage's main setting is the garden. Photograph flower and rough leaf to identify later seedlings correctly.
Manage self-seeding
Self-seeding borage need not mean keeping every volunteer. Mark one or two useful seedlings and remove others from sowing rows. Keep dry reserve seed too. This preserves enjoyable surprise without hiding next spring's carrots or spinach.
Scent, flavour and use
According to RHS, the flowers of Borago officinalis have a light cucumber-like flavour. Use correctly identified, untreated flowers as a small garnish; do not give a general recommendation to eat all the rough leaves or large quantities of borage.
Care, cutting and harvesting
Sow in April or May directly into loose soil in a sunny spot. Borage tolerates light shade but flowers best in sun. Keep the soil moist at the start, not waterlogged. Expect a fairly large plant; for a pot, RHS recommends a minimum width of around 30 cm.
Borage does not need shaping. Occasional support stops a large plant falling over its neighbours. Borago pygmaea is a perennial relative; clear its dead above-ground remains in autumn. Do not overwinter annuals as woody shrubs.
Pick fresh flowers shortly before use. For seed, let the flowers develop into hard, dark seeds. Shake ripe seed into a paper bag and label it. Remove unwanted self-sown seedlings early where vegetables need space.
Cutting, caring and following the season
Borage does not need shaping. Occasional support stops a large plant falling over its neighbours. Borago pygmaea is a perennial relative; clear its dead above-ground remains in autumn. Do not overwinter annuals as woody shrubs.
Species information and annual cycle
- Space
- Recommended spacing is missing. Check the plant label or seed packet; unknown space does not count as free space.
- Soil
- No pH range supported by sources is included. Test your soil and follow species and variety guidance.
- Season
- An indicative growth estimate is included; actual development still needs checking.
- Care
- Guide advice is available; the automatic species task matrix is not yet complete. Check the plant regularly and plan a task yourself if needed.
What you need
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Make it your garden
Save your favourite variety or add it to My garden. Your own observations determine the growth stage; care tasks are based on the species.
Add Borage to my gardenExplore more flowersSources and image information
SeedSteps editorial team · checked on 13 October 2026. Flavour descriptions come from the listed sources; ripeness and growing conditions affect flavour. AI images illustrate described characteristics and do not prove cultivar identity.
- World Checklist of Vascular Plants — 4 juni 2026Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew · 2026-10-07
- Edible flowersRoyal Horticultural Society · 2026-10-13
- Borago officinalis AlbaKahikatea Farm · 2026-10-13
- Borago pygmaeaKwekerij De Hessenhof · 2026-10-13
- Borago officinalisJekka's Herb Farm · 2026-10-13
- How to grow borageRoyal Horticultural Society · 2026-10-13