Teucrium scordium
| Teucrium scordium | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 2' |
| Blooms: | Mid Summer-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Medicinal Rating: | |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Teucrium scordium (common name: water germander)
Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a cold frame and only just cover the seed[1]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in the summer if they are large enough. Otherwise, grow them on in a cold frame for the winter and plant them out in the following spring.
Division in early spring[2]. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is best to pot up smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame until they are growing away well. Plant them out in the summer or the following spring.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[1].
Cultivation: Succeeds in any moderately good soil. See notes on the plants habitat for more ideas on its needs.
Water germander was at one time cultivated in gardens as a medicinal herb, though it has fallen into disuse[3]. The crushed plant has a penetrating odour that is somewhat like garlic. It is said to taint the milk if eaten by cows[3].
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Sweden south and east to France, W. Siberia and Serbia.
Habitat: Banks of rivers and ditches on calcareous soils and on dune slacks[4]. A rare plant in Britain[4].
Medicinal: The herb is anthelmintic, antifungal, antiseptic, diaphoretic, skin, tonic[3][5]. Water germander was at one time esteemed as an antidote for poisons and also as an antiseptic and anthelmintic, though it is scarcely used nowadays. However, its tonic and diaphoretic actions make it an excellent remedy for all inflammatory diseases[3]. It us also used in the treatment of TB[5].
Usage: A green dye is obtained from the leaves[5].
Pollinators: Bees, self
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Dirr, Michael and Charles Heuser. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press, 1987.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.