292 Inula helenium
bornly in semi-wild conditions. Probably a native of central Asia, it was much
valued by the Romans and the Anglo-Saxons and, serving for food as well as
medicine, was evidently a favourite subsistence plant of early Christian times,
as in Ireland it is found on some of the islets off the coasts as well as on and
around ancient monastic sites more generally. Its ability to survive grazing by
sheep probably accounts for this remarkable persistence.
Inula helenium, elecampane (Bock 1556, p. 65)