Scrophularia californica, Bee Plant

Perennial 3' to 6' high with tiny dark red flowers that are usually being visited by a bee. Larval food plants for checkerspot butterfly. Good for chaparral and coastal areas. Stalks with seed pods are effective in dried-flower arrangements. Quick-growing herbaceous hedge.

This native perennial, though its seeds are tiny, makes its way up through some of the most pernicious invasive species, like cape ivy.