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Fagopyrum esculentum
| Common name: |
Buckwheat |
Family: |
Polygonaceae |
| Author: |
Moench. |
Botanical references: |
17, 200 |
| Synonyms: |
Polygonum fagopyrum (L.), Fagopyrum vulgare (Hill.), Fagopyrum sagittatum (Gilib.) |
| Known Hazards: |
This plant has caused photosensitivity in some people, only the dehusked grain is considered to be safe. |
| Range: |
C. Asia. An occasional casual in Britain. |
| Habitat: |
Waste ground as an escape from cultivation[17]. Its original habitat is obscure. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
3 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 3 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| F. fagopyrum[B,P]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Beechwheat [H], Boekweit [D], Brank [H], Buckwheat [L,H], Ch'Iao Mai [E], Fagopyrum [P], French Wheat [H], Garden Buckwheat [B], Hua Ch'Iao [E], Qamh Al Baqar [E], Saracen Corn [H], Sarrasin [H], T'Ien Ch'Iao [E], Wu Mai [E], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
esculentum = edible;
lentum = pliable;
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA
Plants Database |
|
Order: Polygonales. Buckwheat family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
China; Iraq
|
Physical Characteristics
Annual growing to 1.5m by 0.3m at a fast rate. It is frost tender. It is in flower from July to September, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The scented 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 and flies.
It is noted for attracting wildlife.
We rate it 3/5 for edibility and
3/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in very acid soil.
It cannot grow in the shade.
It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.
Cultivar 'Giant American': Cultivated Beds.
Cultivar 'New Type': Cultivated Beds.
Cultivar 'Spanky': Cultivated Beds.
Edible Uses
Leaves; Rutin; Seed.
Leaves - raw or cooked like spinach[4, 183, K]. Not that wonderful raw,
they improve somewhat with cooking[K]. The leaves are rich in rutin[171] (see
below for more details) and so are a very healthy addition to the diet[K].
Seed - raw or cooked. A nutty flavour, though it has a somewhat gritty
texture[K]. The seed can be soaked overnight in warm water then sprouted for
a few days and added to salads[183]. It can also be ground into a powder and
used as a cereal[2, 4, 9] when it can be made into pancakes, noodles, breads
etc or be used as a thickening agent in soups etc[46, 183]. Rich in vitamin
B6[160]. An excellent beer can be brewed from the grain[244].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Acrid; Astringent; Galactogogue; Vasodilator.
Buckwheat is a bitter but pleasant tasting herb that is frequently used
medicinally because the leaves are a good source of rutin[238]. Rutin is
useful in the treatment of a wide range of circulatory problems, it dilates
the blood vessels, reduces capillary permeability and lowers blood
pressure[238, 254].
The leaves and shoots of flowering plants are acrid, astringent and
vasodilator[4, 141, 165]. It is used internally in the treatment of high
blood pressure, gout, varicose veins, chilblains, radiation damage etc[4,
141, 165]. It is best used in conjunction with vitamin C since this aids
absorption[254]. Often combined with lime flowers (Tilia species), it is a
specific treatment for haemorrhage into the retina[254]. The leaves and
flowering stems are harvested as the plant begins to flower and are dried for
later use[238]. They should be stored in the dark because the active
ingredients rapidly degrade in the light[238]. Some caution should be
exercised in the use of this herb because it has been known to cause
light-sensitive dermatitis[238].
A poultice made from the seeds has been used for restoring the flow of milk
in nursing mothers[4].
An infusion of the herb has been used in the treatment of erysipelas (an
acute infectious skin disease)[4, 244].
A homeopathic remedy has been made from the leaves[9]. It is used in the
treatment of eczema and liver disorders[9]. We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.
Other Uses
Dye; Green manure; Soil reclamation.
A very good green manure plant, it can be used to reclaim badly
degraded soils and subsoils[1, 18, 20, 201].
A blue dye is obtained from the stems[57, 106].
A brown dye is obtained from the flowers[4].
Cultivation details
A very easily grown plant, it prefers dry sandy soils but succeeds in
most conditions including poor[57, 141, 171], heavy[18] or acid soils[141]
and even sub-soils[160]. Prefers a cool moist climate, but it also succeeds
in dry and arid regions[171].
Buckwheat is frequently cultivated for its edible seed and leaves, it can
produce a seed crop in 100 days from sowing[141] and a crop of leaves in 8
weeks. There are some named varieties[183]. The seed ripens irregularly over
a period of several weeks so it is difficult to harvest[141].
Plants have poor frost resistance but they are disease and insect
resistant[166]. They inhibit the growth of winter wheat[18, 20, 201].
The flowers have a pleasant sweet honey scent[245] and are extremely
attractive to bees and hoverflies[4, 171].
Propagation
Seed - sow from the middle of spring to early summer in situ. The seed
usually germinates in 5 days[115]. The earlier sowings are for a seed or leaf
crop whilst the later sowings are used mainly for leaf crops or green manure.
Scent
-
Flowers: Fresh
- The flowers have a pleasant sweet honey smell.
Cultivars
- 'Spanky'
- An improved form that makes excellent flapjacks[183]. Planted late to mature in the autumn, it ripens a crop in 2 - 3 months[183].
- 'New Type'
- A heavy cropper that is less likely to blight than other sorts[183]. The kernels are larger and the straw is stouter and heavier[183].
- 'Mancan'
- An improved form that yields a nutritious grain within 80 days from sowing, the plant flowering after 30 days[183]. It yields average to above average crops[183].
A medium-tall plant[183].
- 'Giant American'
- Produces the largest seed of any buckwheat cultivar, also the heaviest seed per 100 seed weight[183]. Yields average to above average crops[183].
A medium-tall plant to 1.2 metres tall, it blooms in 30 days from sowing[183].
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.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [C] Taxon data.
from the CalFlora database.
- [PHARM] Phytochemical Data
(common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for Polygonum fagopyrum (a possible synonym).
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
References for fagopyrum esculentum (a possible synonym).
References for the family Polygonaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[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.
[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.
[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.
[18] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979
Details of beneficial and antagonistic relationships between neighbouring plants.
[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.
[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.
[106] Coon. N. The Dictionary of Useful Plants. Rodale Press 1975 ISBN 0-87857-090-x
Interesting reading but short on detail.
[115] Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Written about a hundred years ago, but still a very good guide to the useful plants of Britain.
[141] Carruthers. S. P. (Editor) Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading 1986 ISBN 0704909820
Some suggested alternative commercial crops for Britain. Readable. Produced by a University study group.
[160] Natural Food Institute, Wonder Crops. 1987.
Fascinating reading, this is an annual publication. Some reports do seem somewhat exaggerated though.
[165] Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.
An excellent small herbal.
[166] Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990
A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.
[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.
[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
[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.
[201] Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993 ISBN 0-304-34324-2
A well produced and very readable book.
[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
[244] Phillips. R. & Foy. N. Herbs Pan Books Ltd. London. 1990 ISBN 0-330-30725-8
Deals with all types of herbs including medicinal, culinary, scented and dye plants. Excellent photographs with quite good information on each plant.
[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.
[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
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