Culver's root, Veronicastrum virginicum
 
Long-blooming white flower spikes gracefully dance in the summer breeze, bringing elegance to your garden. They combine beautifully with any colour scheme. The whorled light-green leaves are also very attractive. But Culver's root is not only beautiful; it is a pollinator magnet!
 
Ecology:
Bees, tiny and large, flock to the plant for nectar and pollen. Butterflies, wasps of all sizes, predatory beneficial flies like the thick-headed fly, which is a wasp mimic and hoverflies are also very attracted to the nectar of Culver's root. The leaves feed the borer moth's caterpillar as a host plant. 
 
Growing conditions:
Culver's root is equally at home in wet prairies and meadows as in floodplains and forest edges. In the garden, it thrives in moist, rich soil in the sun or partial shade. It can, though, be grown in regular garden conditions, and with less moisture, it will be shorter. You can deadhead the flower spikes to prolong the bloom time.