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Cephalaria syriaca

Common name:	Makhobeli	Family:	Dipsacaceae
Author:	(L.)Roem.& Schult.	Botanical references:	1, 74, 93
Synonyms:	Scabiosa syriaca (L.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Europe - Spain to W. Asia.
Habitat:	Cultivated fields and waste places[74, 93].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Syrian Cephalaria [B,P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	syriaca = from Syria
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Dipsacales. Teasel family

Physical Characteristics

Annual. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Seed.

Seed - ground into a powder and used with wheat to make bread, cakes etc. It adds a nice flavour but quickly goes rancid[74].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Fuel Oil.

The seed contains 22.6% oil, it is used as a fuel[74].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in an ordinary garden soil[1].
This plant is often encouraged to grow in wheatfields in Russia so that its edible seed will be mixed with the wheat grain when this is harvested[74].

Propagation

Seed - we have no details but suggest sowing the seed in situ in March or April. It might also be worth experimenting with a September/October sowing.

Suppliers

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

Web References

[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.
[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

References for the family Dipsacaceae.

To be included in the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

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

References

[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]).

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[93] Davis. P. H. Flora of Turkey. Edinburgh University Press 1965
Not for the casual reader, this is an immense work in many volumes. Some details of plant uses and habitats.

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
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Cephalaria+syriaca
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Cephalaria+syriaca

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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.