Bupleurum fruticosum (Shrubby Hare’s Ear)

Bupleurum fruticosum is an evergreen subshrub that’s native to the mediterranean region and often found growing out of limestone cliffs overlooking coastal areas. The leaves are oblong elliptical with a pale green (glaucescent) underside reminiscent of eucalyptus leaves. During the Winter, Spring and Autumn months it is unassuming, providing lush greenery, but for a short few months (June-July/August) in the mid-summer it sends out umbels (~10cm in width) of small yellow flowers that provide a pop of color after most of the Spring flowers have died back and/or gone to seed. It is highly drought and pest tolerant, making it a really great addition to a pesticide-free garden in our warming climate.

The essential oil of B. fruticosum is rich in alpha and beta pinene, an organic compound of the terpene class that is found in coniferous trees and a variety of angiosperms such as Pistacia terebinthus and Cannabis. Alpha pinene is one of the most commonly found terpenoids in nature and has an insect-repelling effect.