Balsamorhiza hookeri
| Balsamorhiza hookeri | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 5 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 1' |
| Width: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Balsamorhiza hookeri (common name: balsam root)
Propagation: Seed - sow early spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination usually takes place within 2 - 6 days at 18°c. Either sow the seed in individual pots or pot up the seedlings as soon as they are large enough to handle and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer[1].
Division in spring. Very difficult since the plant strongly resents root disturbance[1]. It is probably best to take quite small divisions, or basal cuttings, without disturbing the main clump. Pot these up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in the greenhouse until they are growing away well. Plant them out in the summer if they have grown sufficiently, otherwise over-winter them in the greenhouse and plant out in late spring.
Cultivation: Requires a deep fertile well-drained loam in full sun[1][2]. Plants strongly resent winter wet[1][2].
Hardy to at least -25°c[2].
Plants are intolerant of root disturbance and should be planted into their permanent positions whilst still small[1].
Range: Western and Central N. America
Habitat: Dry rock outcrops in foothills and lowlands[3].
Edibility: Root - raw or cooked[4][5][6][7][8]. A sweet and agreeable taste when cooked[9][10].
Seed - raw or cooked[10][11]. It can be ground into a powder and formed into cakes for eating raw or made into a bread[8].
Medicinal: A decoction of the root has been used for stomach problems, bladder complaints and female complaints[257. The sub-species B. hookeri hirsuta has been specified for these uses[8].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: B. hirsuta.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan, 1988.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Hitchcock, Leo. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press, 1955.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Coon, Nelson. The Dictionary of Useful Plants. Rodale Press, 1975.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Yanovsky, Elias. Food Plants of the North American Indians Publication 237. US Department of Agriculture.