The weather has all gone a bit 'pants' here lately (I believe that's the modern turn of phrase).

So today I give you something Brazilian to cheer you up.

The thing is that I have this passion for finding plants which are good for wildlife but which you rarely - or never - see mentioned in wildlife gardening books.

Go on, prove me wrong - tell me where you've seen this one mentioned before!

I love it - it is Alstroemeria psittacina - the Parrot Lily. Yes, we've all seen the typical Alstroemeria, the Lily of the Incas, which is itself not bad for bees. But I think this one from Brazil is even better. I photographed this (from above) at Wisley in August, but it will flower well into the autumn.

Bees can disappear up the long tubular flowers and rummage away happily for many seconds before shimmying out backwards.

And the seed heads on the three foot stems are an added visual bonus once the flowers have gone over.

You'll need a soil that is acid to neutral - it would be no good on my chalk. And give it light shade, a sheltered position and soil that doesn't dry out too much. Give it all that, and wow your neighbours and your bees.