Peter Dowdall: How to care for lychnis or ragged robin 

Whether you're a gardening beginner or expert, Irish Examiner columnist Peter Dowdall has the answer to your questions

The deeply lobed petals of this white ragged robin give it its rather ragged appearance from which it gets its common name. Picture: iStock

There's a plant that I always admire when I see it and then I always forget to get it for my own garden. Well, that was taken care of recently when I saw it in a garden centre and it has now made its way home to chez Peter.

Silene or Lychnis flos-cuculi is a bit of a tongue twister even for the most classically educated amongst us, but it is much more widely known by its far more attractive-sounding common name, ragged robin.