About us...
We Work Hard To Provide You The Best Quality Seeds
Roger Parsons Sweet Peas is a family-run business consisting of Roger, his wife Alison, their daughter Fran and our friend, Shelly. Fran has particular responsibility for sales and marketing, so she and Shelly are the people most likely to answer the phone if you ring us up.
Our Team
Roger Parsons
Fran Armitage
Shelly Stote
Where it started
Roger Parsons is a professional horticulturist who has been growing Sweet Peas since 1985 and other Lathyrus species since 1991. From 1993, he has been custodian of a National Collection ® of Lathyrus species and from 1998 custodian of a seedbank of Sweet Pea cultivars. In May 2005 the National Collection ® was extended to include L.odoratus cultivars (Sweet Peas). Roger Parsons Sweet Peas was established in 2005 to offer surplus seeds from these collections. Roger has won coveted Gold Awards for his Sweet Peas at National Sweet Pea Society exhibitions in 2008 & 2009. In March 2012, Roger was awarded the prestigious Henry Eckford Gold Memorial Medal. This is the highest honour presented by the National Sweet Pea Society and is rarely awarded. In August 2014, Roger started to exclusively retail seeds for Cooltonagh Irish Sweet Peas.In September 2018, the National Collection ® was awarded Scientific status by Plant Heritage and in July 2019 received the coveted Brickell Award for excellence in the conservation of cultivated plants.
Roger is well known among sweet pea growers as a Trustee of the National Sweet Pea Society and its Chairman from 2017-2020. He is a former Chairman of the NSPS/Royal Horticultural Society Joint Trials Committee. Roger’s particular interests include the history and development of the sweet pea, other Lathyrus species and the raising of new varieties. He is author of the book “Sweet Peas: an Essential Guide” and co-author of “Lathyrus: a Complete Guide”. In March 2022, Roger was elected President of the National Sweet Pea Society.
The Office Mascots!
If you’re on the phone to us and occasionally hear a dog barking you can guarantee its one of these two!
Bertie the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and Ralphie the mix breed terrier.
Both particularly cheeky when its comes to biscuits!