Plantago coronopus
| Plantago coronopus | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 1' |
| Width: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Mid Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Plantago coronopus (common name: buck's-horn plantain)
Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in early summer.
A sowing can be made outdoors in situ in mid to late spring if you have enough seeds.
Cultivation: Succeeds in any moderately fertile soil in a sunny position[1].
A polymorphic species[2].
This plant has sometimes been cultivated for its edible leaves[3][4].
An important food plant for many caterpillars[5].
Range: Coasts of west and south Europe, including Britain, south and east from Sweden to N. Africa, W. Asia
Habitat: Sandy or gravelly soils and cracks in rocks, in sunny places in dry soils usually near the sea[6][7].
Edibility: Young leaves - raw or cooked[3][8][2][9]. High yielding[10]. One of the nicer tasting members of this genus, the leaves are fairly tender and have a slight bitterness[K]. Some people blanch the leaves in boiling water for a few seconds before using them in salads in order to make them more tender[9]. This leaf is one of the ingredients of 'misticanze', a salad mixture of wild and cultivated leaves that originated in the Marche region of Italy[9].
Medicinal: The leaves are antiperiodic and ophthalmic. They are used as a remedy for ague and sore eyes[6].
Plantain seeds contain up to 30% mucilage which swells up in the gut, acting as a bulk laxative and soothing irritated membranes[11]. Sometimes the seed husks are used without the seeds[11].
Pollinators: Wind
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates maritime wind exposure
Seed Ripens: Mid Summer-Late Summer
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Corbetta, Francisco. The COmplete Book of Fruits and Vegetables. 1985.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Larkcom, Joy. Salads all the Year Round. Hamlyn, 1980.
- ↑ Carter, David. Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe. Pan, 1982.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ Triska, Jan. Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn, 1975.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ Vilmorin-Andrieux. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.