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Lythrum salicaria
| Common name: |
Purple Loosestrife |
Family: |
Lythraceae |
| Author: |
L. |
Botanical references: |
17, 200 |
| Synonyms: |
|
| Known Hazards: |
None known |
| Range: |
Europe, including Britain, south to N. Africa east to western and northern Asia. N. America.. |
| Habitat: |
Reed swamps at the margins of lakes and slow-flowing rivers, fens and marshes, avoiding acid soils[17]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
2 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 3 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| L. salicaria var. gracilior[B,P]
L. salicaria var. tomentosum[B,P]
L. salicaria var. vulgare[B,P]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Ezo-Miso-Hagi [E], Farandal [E], Grote Kattenstaart [D], Kirmizi Hevhulma [E], Loosestrife [S], Loosestrife, Purple [S], Purple Loosestrife [FEIS,H,S,B,L,P], Purple Willow-herb [H], Salicaria [E], Spiked Loosestrife [L], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
salicaria = Salix like;
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA
Plants Database |
|
Order: Myrtales. Loosestrife family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Britain; Iraq; Spain; Turkey
|
| Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds | From USDA
PLANTS database, Weeds Australia
, DEFRA Injurious Weeds | | Listed as noxious/invasive for: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Washington, Wisconsin. |
Physical Characteristics
Perennial growing to 1m by 0.5m . It is hardy to zone 3. It is in flower from June to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees and flies.
It is noted for attracting wildlife.
We rate it 2/5 for edibility and
3/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.
It requires moist or wet soil and can grow in water.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Pond, Bog Garden.Edible Uses
Colouring; Leaves; Root.
Leaves - cooked[13, 46, 61, 105]. Rich in calcium[179].
Root - cooked[13].
An edible dye is obtained from the flowers[13].
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Antibiotic; Astringent; Hypoglycaemic; Styptic; Vulnerary.
Purple loosestrife is an astringent herb that is mainly employed as a
treatment for diarrhoea and dysentery. It can be safely taken by people of
all ages and has been used to help arrest diarrhoea in breast-feeding
babies[254]. It can also be used to treat heavy periods and inter-menstrual
bleeding[254]. Modern research has shown the whole plant to be antibiotic and
to be particularly effective against the micro-organism that causes
typhus[254].
The flowering plant is antibiotic, highly astringent, hypoglycaemic, styptic
and vulnerary[4, 7, 9, 21, 152, 218, 238]. It is valued as an intestinal
disinfectant, especially in cases of enteritis[7], an infusion is used
internally in the treatment of diarrhoea, internal bleeding, excessive
menstruation etc[9, 222, 238]. The flowering plant is harvested in the summer
and can be used fresh or dried[9].
Externally, the plant is used as a cleansing and healing wash for wounds,
sores, impetigo, eczema, excess vaginal discharge, vaginal itching etc[7,
222, 238, 254]. The powdered plant is used as a haemostatic in cases of
severe nosebleeds[7].
The stems are regarded as gum stimulators and are given to children to chew
in order to strengthen weak or bleeding gums[7].
Other Uses
Cosmetic; Dye; Preservative; Tannin; Teeth.
A decoction of the plant is impregnated into wood, rope etc to prevent
it rotting in water[74]. The leaves contain about 12% tannin, the stems
10.5%, the flowers 13.7% and the roots 8.5%[218]. It is probably these
tannins that preserve the wood etc[218].
The powdered plant is used cosmetically in face-packs to counteract reddened
skin[7].
Cultivation details
Succeeds in ordinary garden soil, especially if it is damp[1]. Prefers
a neutral to alkaline soil[238]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Grows well
in marshy soils[24] and succeeds in shallow water at the edges of ponds[56].
Succeeds in full sun or partial shade[188].
A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to at least -25°c[187].
This species can be very invasive and has been declared a noxious weed in
some countries. Since being introduced in N. America it has invaded native
marshlands, florming large areas of dense stands and crowding out many native
species[274].
A very ornamental plant[1]. A good bee and butterfly plant[24].
Plants usually self-sow when well sited[200].
Propagation
Seed - sow in the autumn or the spring in a cold frame. When they are
large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and
plant them out in the summer.
If you have sufficient seed it could be worthwhile trying a sowing in situ
in the autumn or the spring.
Division in March or October[188]. Larger clumps can be replanted direct
into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps
and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out
in the spring.
Basal cuttings in the spring[238]. Harvest the shoots with plenty of
underground stem when they are about 8 - 10cm above the ground. Pot them up
into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or
greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.
Suppliers
Plants For A Future is working with the following groups to try and make these plants easily available. Parts of the proceeds will be donated to so please mention us when ordering.
- Wildwood Nurseries
-
Lower Manor Cottage
Thornbury
Holsworthy
Devon
EX22 7DD
Email: lorna@macace.co.uk
Phone 01409 261324
Fax 01409 261324
Distribution: UK
How to order: Direct from Wildwood by email/phone
Last Updated: March 03
Item:
Lythrum salicaria
(purple loosestrife)
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.
- [S] Image
from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
- [S] Image
from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
- [S] Illustration
from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
- [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.
- [FEIS] Data
(Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for lythrum salicaria (a possible synonym).
References for the family Lythraceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[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]).
[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.
[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
[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.
[13] Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.
[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.
[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.
[24] Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden.
Fairly good with lots of ideas about creating wildlife areas in the garden.
[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.
[56] Muhlberg. H. Complete Guide to Water Plants. E. P. Publishing Ltd. 1982 ISBN 0-7158-0789-7
Deals with a wide range of plants for temperate areas (and indoor aquaria) with quite a lot of information on cultivation techniques.
[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
[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.
[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
[152] Lassak. E. V. and McCarthy. T. Australian Medicinal Plants.
A very good and readable guide to the subject.
[179] Reid. B. E. Famine Foods of the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre 1977
A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.
[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.
[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
[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.
[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.
[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.
[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.
[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.
Readers Comments
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Plant information taken from the
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Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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