It was in the gardens of late Princess Diana’s childhood home, Althorp House, where the sweetpea variety we know — for their pretty late winter flowers in the pastel shade version of all colours of the rainbow — was first nurtured into being. 

More than 120 years ago,  Althorp House head gardener Silas Cole developed the long- stemmed delicately scented Lathyrus odoratus. Combining the plants with seeds from Sicily, Silas crossed the variety “Lovely” with “Triumph” and from the few promising seedlings which grew, he used them to cross with “Prima Donna”. ..