A couple of weeks ago I wrote about Mexican Fleabane, Erigeron karvinskianus, which is a lovely plant for the edges of borders and raised beds in a sunny position.

Another plant that I can thoroughly recommend for this situation is Phuopsis stylosa, a pretty, pink-flowered member of the Bedstraw family, the Rubiaceae. The family includes our British Crosswort, bedstraws and the edible (but in my opinion, revolting) annual weed Goosegrass. Phuopsis‘ English names include Caucasian Crosswort, Large-styled Crosswort and Creeping Crosswort and all describe aspects of the plant – it comes from the Caucasus and Northern Iran, its flowers have long, protruding styles and it has a creeping growth habit. Phuopsis looks lovely cascading over the edge of a raised bed.

Phuopsis stylosa isn’t fussy about soil type and is very hardy. It flowers in early summer but you can prolong flowering by cutting it back hard after flowering. In fertile soils you may have to do this anyway, as it’s a vigorous plant. At the Belvedere Centre (where I first grew it) I had to cut it to keep it off adjacent Aubretia plants, which it would otherwise have overwhelmed.

Apart from vigour, Phuopsis has one slight drawback for some people. The foliage smells a bit foxy or, according to American gardeners, a bit like a skunk. The plant does have a distinctive smell, but only when crushed, and I don’t find it unpleasant. As I don’t make a habit of sniffing foxes (or skunks) I’m not certain about the comparison.

You can grow Phuopsis stylosa from seed but it is very easy to establish from a small, rooted piece of an existing plant, which is what I did.

It goes well with Red Valerian and, in the photo above, Salvia microphylla and Campanula in one of our raised beds.