Buy milk parsley (syn. Selinum wallichianum) Ligusticopsis wallichiana

Ligusticopsis wallichiana

milk parsley (syn. Selinum wallichianum)

milk parsley (syn. Selinum wallichianum)

The noted plantsman E. A. Bowles loved this plant, calling it 'the most beautiful of all fern leaved plants', and it certainly has a lot going for it. The tiny, star shaped white flowers appear in flattened umbels in midsummer and continue through to autumn. These billowing clouds of flowers appear to hover above the finely cut leaves on tall, red tinged stems. These look great in a mixed border, but to appreciate them in all their glory, you should try not to overcrowd them - many prefer to grow them as specimen plants.

How to care for Ligusticopsis wallichiana:

Apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted garden compost or manure around the base of the plant in early spring. Remove faded flowerheads and cut back dying foliage in autumn. They resent disturbance but you can divide carefully in early spring if necessary.

Flowering period:

Eventual height:

1.8m

Eventual spread:

0.6m

Position:

Full sun / light shade

Rate of growth:

Average

Soil:

Moderately fertile, moist, well-drained soil

Hardiness:

Fully hardy

This perennial dies back to below ground level each year in autumn, then fresh new growth appears again in spring.