This Asian introduction is a garden plant which occasionally escapes and because of its size (1 to 2m) can hardly be missed. At first glance you might think you've seen a sunflower but a more thorough look tells you that it is a smaller composite with many more stem leaves and a much smaller flower head. This one was at the side of a road in the middle of nowhere.

It has fairly successfully spread into the countryside in England and Wales but sites get fewer the farther north you travel so there is little in northern Scotland. Ireland is a good home for this plant but interestingly there is none reported in the area where this one was found.

Countryside near Ballycastle, Northern Ireland 19th August 2006

Added on 29th September 2006, updated 13th April 2010, updated 17th December 2009