Canon 450D,f5.6,1/250sec,ISO400,194mm. The Romans introduced lupins to this country. They used them as food, both for themselves and their animals, and sowed them in vast quantities to plough back into the soil as green manure. Plants from Europe and Asia were mentioned in the first English herbals and their cultivation in British gardens was recorded as early as the 15th century. The discovery of an exotic version, Lupinus arboreus, along the coast of California by Captain Vancouver's expedition in 1792 must have caused quite a stir. The tree lupin is a woody evergreen shrub with compound palmate leaves and short racemes of pale yellow, delicately perfumed flowers. What excitement, bringing home the seeds. And imagine the amazement at their rate of growth. Tree lupins compete seriously with Jack's beanstalk. Given the right conditions, seed sown in early spring will produce a plant up to 6ft tall, and as far across, in its first year. It bears such a wealth of flower that the foliage is almost invisible from early June until September. It is short-lived but since new plants can be raised so easily this is neither here nor there. Because of its instant stature, this is an ideal plant to fill in gaps in a shrub border or even among slow-going herbaceous plants. The great advantage is that it fixes nitrogen in the soil, making it more rather than less fertile as it gets bigger . In fact, the tree lupin will put up with almost anything as long as the ground isn't waterlogged. It is prone to snapping in richer conditions, but when grown hard it is pliable and strong and will bind sandy soil. It is happy at the seaside and can stand high degrees of salinity, which makes it useful as a glamorous windbreak. Should the tree lupin exceed its designated boundaries and start to overshadow its neighbours, you can chop it back hard without causing permanent damage. This is among the most tolerant of plants.