Peucedanum officinale
| Peucedanum officinale | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 4' |
| Blooms: | Mid Summer-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Medicinal Rating: | |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Peucedanum officinale (common name: hog's fennel)
Propagation: Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing the seed in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe if this is possible otherwise in early spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer.
Cultivation: An easily grown plant, it succeeds in any moisture-retentive soil in a sunny position[1].
Suitable for group plantings in the wild garden[1].
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Germany south and east to Portugal, central Russia and the Balkans.
Habitat: Banks near the sea[2] and in grassland[3]. Salt marshes[4].
Medicinal: The plant is anodyne, antispasmodic, aperient, diaphoretic, diuretic and pectoral[4][5][6]. An infusion is used in the treatment of coughs, bronchial catarrh etc[5]. The root is mainly used, it is harvested in the spring or autumn and dried for later use[5].
A homeopathic remedy is made from the roots[5]. It is used in the treatment of bronchial catarrh, coughs, intermittent fevers and to stimulate menstrual flow[5].
Usage: Yields a gum, similar to 'Gum Ammoniac' (which is obtained from Ferula communis)[6][7]. The root is wounded in the spring and then yields a considerable quantity of a yellowish-green juice which dries into a gummy resin and retains the strong sulphur-like smell of the plant[4]. The gum of Ferula communis is used as an incense[4] and also has medicinal value[8].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: Skin contact with the sap of this plant is said to cause photo-sensitivity and/or dermatitis in some people[9][10]. It is also said to contain the alleged 'psychotroph' myristicine[10].
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Tutin, Tom et al.. Flora Europaea. Cambridge University Press, 1964.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Launert, Edmund. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn, 1981.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Frohne, Dietrich and Hans Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Timber Press, 1984.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.