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Polygonum coccineum
| Common name: |
Water Smartweed |
Family: |
Polygonaceae |
| Author: |
Muhl. |
Botanical references: |
43, 200 |
| Synonyms: |
Polygonum muehlenbergii ((Meisn.)Watson.), Persicaria muehlenbergii ((Meisn.)Small.) |
| Known Hazards: |
Although no specific mention has been made for this species, there have been reports that some members of this genus can cause photosensitivity in susceptible people.
Many species also contain oxalic acid (the distinctive lemony flavour of sorrel) - whilst not toxic this substance can bind up other minerals making them unavailable to the body and leading to mineral deficiency. Having said that, a number of common foods such as sorrel and rhubarb contain oxalic acid and the leaves of most members of this genus are nutritious and beneficial to eat in moderate quantities. Cooking the leaves will reduce their content of oxalic acid. People with a tendency to rheumatism, arthritis, gout, kidney stones or hyperacidity should take especial caution if including this plant in their diet since it can aggravate their condition[238]. |
| Range: |
Western N. America - Quebec to California. |
| Habitat: |
Ponds and damp ground by streams, lakes etc[43]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
1 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 0 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| P. amphibium var. coccineum[B]
P. amphibium var. emersum[B,C,G,P]
P. coccineum var. pratincola[B,P]
P. coccineum var. terrestre[B,P]
P. muehlenbergii var. terrestre[B,P]
Persicaria amphibia[B,P]
Persicaria amphibia var. emersa[B,P]
Persicaria coccinea[B,P]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Longroot Smartweed [P], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
coccineum = scarlet
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA Plants Database |
|
Order: Polygonales. Buckwheat family
|
| Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds | From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia
, DEFRA Injurious Weeds | | Listed as noxious/invasive for: California. |
Physical Characteristics
Perennial growing to 0.5m. It is hardy to zone 5. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.
We rate it 1/5 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 can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.
It requires wet soil and can grow in water.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Pond, Bog Garden.Edible Uses
Leaves
Seed.
Young shoots - cooked[46, 61, 105]. Used in the spring[161].
Seed - raw or cooked. It is rather small and fiddly to utilize.
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
None known
Other Uses
None known
Cultivation details
A water plant, succeeding in shallow water or a bog garden[200].
Tolerates most soils but repays generous treatment[1].
The stems of this plant root at the nodes wherever they come into contact
with the soil[200].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[233].
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. Germination is usually free and
easy. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into
individual pots and plant them out in the summer if they have reached
sufficient size. If not, overwinter them in a cold frame and plant them out
the following spring after the last expected frosts.
Division in spring or autumn. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted out
direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is better to pot
up the smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame
until they are well established before planting them out in late spring or
early summer.
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
References for Polygonum amphibium var. emersum (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.
[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]).
[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.
[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.
[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.
[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.
[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.
[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.
[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.
[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.
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?Polygonum+coccineum
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Polygonum+coccineum
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