A look at 8 botanical knitting patterns to inspire your next knitting project including a closer look at my latest plant-inspired knitting pattern, Hedgebind. Expect to see some stranded colourwork, leaf-like cables and beautiful details to please the plant lover in you.
8 plant-inspired knitting patterns to include in your winter (and spring) knitting plans
In one of my previous knitting inspiration blogs which covered 13 of my own plant-inspired knitting patterns, I promised to follow up with a second. This time, I'm talking about my favourite botanical knit designs from other designers I would love to knit myself. Winter is still very much upon us here in the South West of England, but with the UK weather, I think these knits would find their way into your handmade wardrobe in Spring too.
Some designs featured here have very obvious nods to the botanical life with stranded colourwork motifs with leaves and flowers, but I've also found some plant-inspired knitting patterns with more interesting construction which I really love. So, without further ado, let's take a look.
1. Hedgebind - a drop sleeve jumper with all-over, botanical colourwork
I have to say, Hedgebind is quite a polarising knit. It's a drop-shoulder sweater design I created for Making Stories Issue 12, which was their art nouveau issue. The jumper has a rather elaborate colourwork panel across the front consisting of bindweed flowers, leaves and vines. As I said, it’s been quite funny with this botanical knit design to hear knitters say how much they love the pattern, but how much they despair of bindweed in their garden - something which, as a gardener myself, I can completely understand. The flowers are so pretty and delicate, but it is overwhelming in nature!
The body of Hedgebind is knit bottom up, in the round. The large colourwork chart is worked on the front, bordered by a smaller motif that extends onto the back. Stitches are cast on for steeks at the armholes, front neck and back neck and then cut once the body is complete. Stitches are picked up around the armholes for the sleeves, which are knit in the round with a tapered finish at the wrist. To finish, stitches are picked up for the neckband, which is then folded double and stitched down for a neat finish.
Gauge:
24 stitches & 24 rounds = 10cm (4 in) on in stranded colourwork pattern worked in the round, on larger needles after blocking;
Knit this in:
I knit this botanical colourwork jumper in Telling Yarns Steadfast DK. I used Mrs Coulter for MC and Meg for CC.
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Find the Hedgebind knitting pattern on my website
2. Bifurca - a cropped colourwork vest by Teti Lutsak
Teti Lutsak is a knitwear designer so deeply inspired by plants that choosing just one design was almost impossible. Her work is an exploration of intriguing construction methods and interesting colourwork techniques, both beautifully evident in Bifurca.
The cropped vest features a central panel with a lovely botanical colourwork pattern, knit in the round. Four side sections are worked sideways from the panel and joined at the underarms. The body and armhole edges are finished with half-twisted rib.
I love Bifurca as a layering piece - it looks like such a fun piece to knit and the shape would perfectly pair with high-waisted skirts. I also think you could have a lot of fun choosing colour combinations for the colourwork. If you're a knitter who's on the colder side, there's also a jumper version, although I much prefer the vest for highlighting that beautiful shape around the shoulder and bust.
Gauge:
For the stockinette: 23 stitches & 36 rounds = 10cm (4 in) on 3.0 mm (US 2.5) needles in stockinette worked in the round after blocking;
For the colourwork: 24 stitches & 32 rounds = 10cm (4 in) on 3.0 mm (US 2.5) needles in colourwork pattern worked in the round after blocking;
For the ribbing: 26 stitches & 40 rounds = 10cm (4 in) on 2.5 mm (US 1.5) needles in half-twisted 1x1 ribbing worked in the round after blocking.
Knit this in:
This lovely colourwork vest uses Semilla Pura from BC Garn (100% organic wool), but you can use any other sport/DK weight that allows you to meet gauge.
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Find the Birfurca knitting pattern on Ravelry
3. Perennial - a cable knit jumper by Norah Gaughan
One of my favourite knitwear designers and the queen of cables, Norah Gaughan, never fails to inspire me. I admire her work so much and her Perennial jumper is a perfect example of why. Those of you who are familiar with my own knitting patterns will know how much I love knitting cables and I find this cable design fascinating. It's full of really pretty, unconventional twists that evoke the ridges on leaves. For me, it instantly brings to mind a hosta plant and the beautiful variegation you get on some varieties.
Perennial is knit in pieces from the bottom up with the lower front shaped with German short rows to create a gentle curve. The body has an a-line shape, low crewneck and set-in sleeves. Two over two cables combine with twisted stitches to form those lovely cabled leaves and leaf veins across the front and back.
Gauge:
For the stockinette: 22 stitches & 30 rows = 10cm (4 in) on 4.0 mm (US 6) needles in stockinette worked in the round after blocking;
For the ribbing: 24 stitches & 32 rounds = 10cm (4 in) on 3.25 mm (US 3) needles in 2x2 rib after blocking;
Knit this in:
This plant-inspired knitting pattern was designed for La Bien Aimée's worsted collection using their Corrie Worsted (75% Falkland Corriedale, 25% Gotland), but you could use any other light worsted weight yarn that allows you to meet gauge.
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Find the Perennial knitting pattern on Ravelry
4. Leaves Cardigan - a v-neck cardigan by Carmen Garcia de Mora
A heads up on this plant-inspired knit - the size range isn't massive, but it is one I have come back to so many times for its incredible shoulder construction. The way the leaf shapes are integrated into the structure of the cardigan is so intriguing that every time I look at it I want to work out how it's knit!
The Leaves Cardigan is a seamless top-down jacket that begins at the neck, gradually forming a pattern of leaves while shaping the shoulders and sleeves. The result is a sleeve covered in beautifully winding leaves that frame the shoulders and shape the jacket.
I think this could work as a handmade wardrobe staple, especially knit up using a yarn that's darker in colour as it's rather unassuming but still completely fascinating. I can imagine it being a very fun botanical design to knit!
Gauge:
18.5 stitches & 27 rows = 10cm (4 in) worked in reverse stockinette stitch after blocking.
Knit this in:
I imagine this one would be a relatively quick knit as it's worked up in De Rerum Natura Gilliatt (100% French mérinos d'Arles and Portuguese black merino), but you could use any other worsted weight yarn that allows you to meet gauge.
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Find the Leaves Cardigan knitting pattern on Ravelry
5. Oak Hollow Mitts - colourwork fingerless mittens by Dianna Walla
The Oak Hollow Mitts by Dianna Walla is one plant-inspired knit that has been in my knitting queue for years! I adore Dianna's colourwork and this botanical design is just so pretty.
These stranded colourwork mittens have the most perfect golden oak leaves worked into the design and the vibes are impeccable. There are so many opportunities for interesting colour combinations, especially with the lovely trimming details. Perfect for adding a pop of something fun (and using up some scraps in your yarn stash).
Gauge:
28 stitches & 38 rows = 10cm (4 in) worked in stranded colourwork on larger needles after blocking.
Knit this in:
Dianna used three colours of Lichen and Lace Rustic Heather Sport (100% wool), but you could use any other sport-weight yarn that allows you to meet gauge.
At this weight, I imagine the knitted fabric is quite dense so these botanical-inspired mitts would be fairly toasty. A fairly standard Shetland style, woollen spun yarn would work incredibly well for a pair of these, so I'd love to knit a pair using my hand-dyed Mendip 4Ply.
For colours, I'm drawn to the shades Fox, Yew and Sage (all on the cloudy base) for real autumnal vibes, but I also love the idea of using white as the background colour to evoke an image of oak leaves in the snow.
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Find the Oak Hollow Mitts knitting pattern on Ravelry
6. Contorta - a classic ribbed beanie inspired by mountain trees by Carolyn Kern
Contorta is a lovely plant-inspired knitting pattern featured in Issue 2 of Making Stories Magazine. Inspired by the contorta pines, this hat features delicate one-by-one knitted cables that grow into beautifully textured pine trees that wrap around the body of the hat.
It's a lovely botanical knit design, worked at a fairly dense gauge which makes it quite warm and cosy. Now that I knit cables without a cable needle, I think it would be such a pleasure to knit for a second time and would absolutely fly by.
Gauge:
35 stitches & 40 rows = 10cm (4 in) worked in charted stitch pattern, in the round, on larger needles after blocking.
Knit this in:
Carolyn used my hand-dyed Mendip 4Ply to design this piece and I knit my own sample using a skein I dyed with what I recall was Ivy, but might have been nettle, years ago.
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Find the Contorta knitting pattern on Ravelry
7. Francie - bark-inspired socks by Rebekkah Kerner
I'm not saying I'm never going to knit a pair of socks ever again, but I am not a sock knitter. For me, the process of knitting socks takes just a little bit too long for my liking, however, these botanical knit socks by Rebekkah have the coolest construction that could make me change my mind
Francie's design has lots of intersecting lines that are meant to recall the bark of trees and I love the way all the different striations come in and out of each other. They look like they would be immensely fun to knit.
Gauge:
32 stitches & 48 rows = 10cm (4 in) worked in 2x2 ribbing, in the round after blocking.
Knit this in:
This plant-inspired knitting pattern was knit using Smooshy by Dream In Color (85% superwash merino, 15% nylon), but you can use any sock yarn you like which allows you to meet gauge.
Find the Francie knitting pattern on Ravelry
8. Gro Hat - a plant-inspired knitted hat by Fibre Tales
Finally, another designer I struggled to choose just one botanical knit design from is Fibre Tales, but after much deliberation, I landed on the Gro Hat. Its stitch pattern is probably meant to evoke sprigs of leaves, but to me, it looks like ears of wheat or corn, or grass seeds.
The Gro Hat is part of a lovely series of plant-inspired knitting patterns, which also includes a shawl and a pair of socks. Each design features the same pretty stitch motif which I think is really lovely.
The hat is worked bottom up in the round, starting with a neat ribbed brim before flowing into the beautiful plant motif. The crown of the hat is shaped and finished by elegant centred double decreases.
Gauge:
19 stitches & 33 rows = 10cm (4 in) worked in stocking stitch, in the round, on larger needles after blocking.
Knit this in:
This plant-inspired knit hat uses 1 skein of La Rinconada by Wooldreamers (100% merino wool), but you could use any DK weight yarn that allows you to meet gauge.
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Find the Gro Hat knitting pattern on Ravelry
Want even more botanical knits?
I love seeing how different knit designers take inspiration from plants and I hope this collection of plant-inspired knitting patterns has given you some new ideas for your own knitting queue.
If you’re drawn to nature-inspired knits, you might also enjoy the blog post I published last year where I shared 13 of my own plant-inspired knitting patterns for your winter knitting plans. I rounded them all up in a plant-inspired knitting pattern collection on my website, but you can also find them in a bundle on Ravelry.
