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Bryonia alba

Common name:	White Bryony	Family:	Cucurbitaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	All parts of the plant, and especially the root, are poisonous[232]. The root can cause severe diarrhoea and vomiting, resulting in death within a matter of hours[232].
Range:	Europe to W. Asia - Iran.
Habitat:	Vineyards and woods[232].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Black-berried Bryony [L], Black-berried White Bryon [H], Bryonia [E], Bryony, Black-berried Whi [H], European White Bryony [H], Seytansalgami [E], White Bryony [L,P,B],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	alba = white;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Violales. Cucumber family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Belgium; Turkey
Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds	From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia , DEFRA Injurious Weeds
	Listed as noxious/invasive for: Washington.

Physical Characteristics

Perennial Climber growing to 4m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 6. It is in flower from May to June. The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Bees. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedgerow, Woodland, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Leaves.

One report says that the young shoots are edible[2], though caution is advised[K]. See the notes above on toxicity.

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Homeopathy.

The root is cathartic, hydrogogue, irritant, pectoral and purgative[4]. The root is harvested in the autumn and can be used either fresh or dried[4]. It should be used with great caution, see notes above on toxicity.
The fresh root, gathered before the plant comes into flower, is made into a homeopathic remedy[232]. This is used in the treatment of a wide range of complaints[232]. It is said to be one of the best diuretics and an excellent remedy for gravel as well as all other obstructions and disorders of the urinary passage[4].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

A rapid grower, it is of easy cultivation succeeding in most soils that are well drained[1], avoiding acid soils in the wild[17].
A climbing plant, attaching itself to other plants by means of tendrils[4].
Plants can be easily encouraged by scattering ripe seed at the base of hedgerows[200].
Plants in the north of their range are monoecious, but those growing in the south are dioecious[200]. Where necessary, male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Sow stored seed in late winter in a cold frame. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter, planting them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in early spring.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[232] Castro. M. The Complete Homeopathy Handbook. Macmillan. London. 1990 ISBN 0-333-55581-3
A concise beginner's guide to the subject. Very readable.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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