Ferula

If you visit the garden in late spring, early summer, you can't fail to notice tall flowering spires, erupting from a froth of fine foliage. The sulphur-yellow rounded heads of small flowers are a magnet to insects and provide a dramatic vertical, especially against a beautiful blue sky. These fennels are in the same family, Apiaceae, as the more traditional culinary fennel, Foeniculum and also have been used in flavourings, medicines and incense. There are many species of fennel across Europe and Asia, with a concentration in Turkey. They are suitable for a sunny position and well drained soil. With their large tap-root, they can survive spells of drought, however this makes them difficult to move once established.