Calla palustris
| Calla palustris | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 4 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-7.3 |
| Height: | 1' |
| Width: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Mid Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Calla palustris (common name: water arum)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in late summer in a cold frame in pots standing in about 3cm of water[1]. Sow stored seed as early as possible in the year in a greenhouse. The germination rate of stored seed is often poor. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in trays of water in the greenhouse for at least their first winter, planting them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in spring[1]. Very easy, it is possible to divide this plant at almost any time in the growing season. Any part of the stem, if placed in water or a pot of very wet soil, will quickly root away to form a new plant.
Stem cuttings in summer, rooted in wet mud[1].
Cultivation: Requires a wet lime-free humus rich soil by water or in shallow, still or slowly flowing water in full sun[1]. When grown on the pond margins it creeps in and out of the water[2]. Succeeds in water up to 25cm deep[3].
Range: Europe. Naturalized in Britain[4].
Habitat: Forest swamps, moorland marshes, by ponds and streams[5].
Edibility: Rhizome - cooked. It is usually prepared by drying the root, grinding it into a powder and then thoroughly cooking it to ensure that any acrimonious principle is completely destroyed. The resulting powder is rich in starch and can be used as a flour for making bread etc, especially in conjunction with cereal flours[2][6][7][8][9]. It is said to be very tasty[10].
Fruit (does this include the seed?) - it should be dried and then thoroughly cooked[11]. The dried fruit and rootstalk can be ground into an unpalatable but nutritious powder[11]. The seed is dried, cooked and ground into a powder[12].
Medicinal: Antirheumatic. Used in the treatment of colds and flu[11].
A tea made from the dried root has been used in the treatment of flu, shortness of breath, bleeding and as a poultice on swellings and snakebites[13][14].
The aerial stems have been used in the treatment of sore legs[14].
Pollinators: Flies
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The plant contains calcium oxylate crystals[13]. These cause an extremely unpleasant sensation similar to needles being stuck into the mouth and tongue if they are eaten, but they are easily neutralized by thoroughly drying or cooking the plant or by ste
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Brickell, Christopher. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers. Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1990.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Altmann, Horst. Poisonous Plants and Animals. Chatto and Windus, 1980.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Harris, Ben. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health, 1973.
- ↑ Polunin, Oleg. Flowers of Europe. Oxford University Press, 1969.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Frohne, Dietrich and Hans Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Timber Press, 1984.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Schofield, Janice. Discovering Wild Plants.
- ↑ Coffey, Timothy. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File, 1993.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.