An easily grown plant so long as it is in a moist peaty neutral or slightly acidic soil, but it also succeeds on dry hillsides. Shade tolerant. Plants only succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of Britain, they are hardy to about -5°c, tolerating light short-lived frosts. A plant is growing in the rock garden at Cambridge Botanical Gardens. It is in an open position but does not receive a lot of direct sunlight. This species is becoming much more common in the wild because it is not eaten by grazing animals nor is it killed by burning.

Root - fleshy. No further details are given.

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Sow stored seed in a greenhouse as early in the year as possible. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 13°c. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first two winters, planting them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Division in the spring. Best done as the plants come into growth. Pot the divisions up and grow them on in a cold frame until they are established then plant them out in the summer.

Northern slopes and damp places from lowland to sub-alpine pastures on North and South Islands south to latitude 42° south.