Campanula rapunculoides
| Campanula rapunculoides | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 3 |
| Soil pH: | 6.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 4' |
| Width: | 3' |
| Speed: | Fast |
| Blooms: | Mid Summer-Early Fall |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Campanula rapunculoides (common name: creeping bellflower)
Propagation: Seed - surface sow spring in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 4 weeks at 18°c[1]. Easy[2]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Basal cuttings in spring[3]. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.
Division in spring or autumn[3]. Very easy, any part of the root will produce a new plant[2].
Cultivation: An easily grown plant succeeding in almost any soil[2], though it prefers a moist but well-drained rich sandy loam and a neutral or alkaline soil in sun or partial shade[4][3]. It is slower growing and less spreading when grown in heavier soils[5].
Plants are hardy to at least -15°c[3].
The species in this genus do not often hybridize and so seed can generally be relied upon to come true[2]. The plants are self-fertile[2].
A beautiful plant, it was at one time cultivated as a culinary plant but has fallen into disuse[6].
The plant produces a mass of thick white roots which can spread at an alarming rate, especially in light soils. It can often fill an entire bed with its tenaceous roots, killing off less vigorous plants[5]. It is best grown in the wild garden where it can be allowed to romp without harm[2][5]. Plants can also succeed when growing in thin grass[7]. Plants produce seed freely and often self-sow[2].
Slugs are very attracted to this plant, we have had great problems growing it on our Cornish trial grounds because the slugs eat out all the new shoots in spring and can kill even well-established specimens[K].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[7].
Range: Europe, north to 65°N., east to W. Asia and the Caucasus. Introduced in Britain.
Habitat: Fields and woods[8]. Naturalised in Britain where it grows in fields and more or less disturbed grassy areas such as railway banks, occasionally in woods, usually near to houses[9].
Edibility: Leaves and young shoots - raw or cooked[10][11]. Rich in vitamin C. A pleasant mild flavour[K].
Root - raw or cooked[12][13][11]. A nut-like flavour, very palatable[10]. The young roots are best[10]. Somewhat sweet, they are a pleasant addition to the salad bowl[14].
Medicinal: The plant has been used as a cure for hydrophobia in Russia[5].
Pollinators: Bees, flies, beetles, lepidoptera, self
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ Bird, R. Growing from Seed Volume 3. Thompson and Morgan, 1989.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Crook, H. Campanulas: Their Cultivation and Classification. Country Life, 1951.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Lewis, Margaret. Campanulas - A Gardener's Guide. B T Batsford, 1998.
- ↑ Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ Polunin, Oleg. Flowers of Europe. Oxford University Press, 1969.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Harrington, Harold. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press, 1967.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.