Ranunculus acris
| Ranunculus acris | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 3' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Mid Summer |
| Meadows | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Ranunculus acris (common name: meadow buttercup)
Propagation: Seed - sow spring in situ. You are very unlikely to need to encourage this plant.
Division in spring. Very easy, though probably totally unnecessary, larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions.
Cultivation: Prefers a moist loamy soil[1]. Grows well in marshy soils[2].
Plants are hardy to at least -20°c[3].
A good plant for the summer meadow[2]. It spreads rapidly by means of runners and is often a weed in lawns or gardens.
A polymorphic species, there is at least one named variety. 'Flore Pleno' is a double-flowered form that does not spread by runners and so is unlikely to become a nuisance in the garden[3].
A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants, especially legumes[4].
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, through Asia to China and Japan.
Habitat: Damp meadows and pastures, usually on calcareous or circum-neutral soils[5][6]. Also found on damp rock ledges, in gullies and occasionally on mountain top detritus[6].
Edibility: Leaves - cooked and used as greens[7]. Some caution is advised, see the notes above on toxicity.
Medicinal: The whole plant is acrid, anodyne, antispasmodic, diaphoretic and rubefacient[5][8]. The plant has been crushed and applied as a poultice to the chest to relieve colds and chest pains[7].
The fresh leaves have been used as a rubefacient in the treatment of rheumatism etc[9].
The flowers and the leaves have been crushed and sniffed as a treatment for headaches[7].
An infusion of the roots has been used in the treatment of diarrhoea[7]. The poulticed root is also rubefacient and was applied to boils and abscess[9][7].
The plant sap has been used to remove warts[5]. The sap has also been used as a sedative[7].
The flowers are used in Tibetan medicine, where they are considered to have an acrid taste and a heating potency[10]. Their use is said to promote heat, dissolve tumours and draw out serous fluids[10]. They are used in the treatment of disorders brought about by rotting sores or wounds[10].
Use with caution[8], the whole plant is extremely acrid and can cause intense pain and burning of the mouth, mucous membranes etc[9].
Pollinators: Bees, flies, beetles, lepidoptera
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: All parts of the plant are poisonous, the toxins can be destroyed by heat or by drying[5][11][12][13][14][15]. The plant has a strongly acrid juice that can cause blistering to the skin[15][16].
Also Known As: R. acer.
Links
References
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Baines, Chris. Making a Wildlife Garden.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Perennials - The Definitve Reference. Pan Books, 1991.
- ↑ Hatfield, Audrey. How to Enjoy your Weeds. Frederick Muller Ltd, 1974.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lust, John. The Herb Book. Bantam Books, 1983.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Tsarong, Tsewang. Tibetan Medicinal Plants. Tibetan Medical Publications, 1994.
- ↑ Altmann, Horst. Poisonous Plants and Animals. Chatto and Windus, 1980.
- ↑ Triska, Jan. Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn, 1975.
- ↑ Stary, Frantisek. Poisonous Plants. Hamlyn, 1983.
- ↑ Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Frohne, Dietrich and Hans Pfänder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Timber Press, 1984.
- ↑ Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.