Plant of the week: Inula hookeri

What is it?

Maybe it’s the uninspiring name, but hooker’s inula (spin that to get the Latin title, Inula hookeri) hasn’t caught on yet. I don’t know why, because it’s a beaut. A wildlife-enthusiast friend asked me to track down a plant after spotting its shaggy yellow daisy flowers alive with butterflies last summer. Unlike the rest of the inula clan (you may be familiar with I. helenium, aka elecampane, which can top 2m), hooker inula is not huge; at about 60cm tall it’s good for smaller pollinator patches.

Plant it with?

It’s a mid- to late-summer performer, so will look great with other “hot” flowers: think heleniums, red hot pokers, monardas and echinacea.

And where?

It’s said to love cool, moist soils, but this hardy perennial will cope with slightly drier conditions than some sources suggest. Partial shade or full sun.

Any drawbacks?

It will colonise widely. It’s fairly easy to get hold of young plants via mail order; try Norfolk Cottage Garden, Claire Austin or Sampford Shrubs.

What else can it do?

Birds love the seedheads, so leave the plants standing into autumn.