Medeola virginiana
| Medeola virginiana | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 3 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Medeola virginiana (common name: indian cucumber root)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame in a well-drained soil-less medium[1]. Fully remove the fleshy seed covering because this contains germination inhibitors. The seed should germinate in the spring[K]. Spring sown seed can be slow to germinate and may take 12 months or more[K]. The seed should be sown thinly so that the seedlings can be grown on undisturbed in the pot for their first year. If necessary apply a liquid feed at intervals through the growing season to ensure that the plants grow on well. Prick the roots out into individual pots in the autumn and grow them on in a shady part of the greenhouse for at least the next growing season, planting them out into their permanent positions when they are dormant.
Division in spring as the plant comes into growth[2].
Cultivation: Prefers light shade and plenty of leaf mould in a slightly acid soil[1]. Prefers a rich sandy soil[2].
The rootstock has a pleasant refreshing smell of cucumber[3].
Range: Eastern N. America - Nova Scotia to Ontario, Minnesota, Florida and Tennessee.
Habitat: Rich woods[4], margins of swamps and bogs[5].
Edibility: Root - raw or cooked[6][5]. Crisp and tender with the aroma and taste of cucumbers[2][7][8][9]. A sweet flavour[10]. The root is up to 8cm long[1].
Medicinal: The root is diuretic and hydrogogue[11]. It is used in the treatment of dropsy[11].
An infusion of the crushed dried berries and leaves has been used to treat babies with convulsions[12].
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Seed Ripens: Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Genders, Roy. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale, 1994.
- ↑ Lyndon, Merritt. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co, 1950.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ Harris, Ben. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health, 1973.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Kavasch, Barrie. Native Harvests. Vintage Books, 1979.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ McPherson, Alan and Sue McPherson. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press, 1977.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.