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Senecio cineraria

Common name:	Cineraria	Family:	Compositae
Author:	DC.	Botanical references:	17, 200
Synonyms:	Senecio bicolor cineraria ((DC.)Chater.), Cineraria maritima ((L.)L.)
Known Hazards:	The plant contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are highly toxic to the liver, so the plant should not be used internally[254].
Range:	S. Europe. Naturalized in Britain.
Habitat:	Maritime cliffs in S.W. England[17], mainly on limestone[45].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	3

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	S. bicolor[B,H,P] S. bicolor ssp. cineraria[B,P] S. bicolor subsp. cineraria[G] S. cineraria subsp. cineraria[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Annual Dusty Miller [H], Cineraria Maritima [S], Dusty Miller [E,S], Dusty Miller USA [H], Rosa Del Mar [E], Sea Ragwort [H], Silver Dust [H], Silver Ragwort [B,P],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Asterales. Renamed to Asteraceae -- Aster family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Mediterranean Spain

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 0.6m by 1m at a medium rate. It is hardy to zone 8. It is in leaf all year, in flower from June to August, and the seeds ripen from July to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedge.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Ophthalmic.

The fresh juice of the leaves is ophthalmic. Applied to the eyes it has a mildly irritating effect that increases blood flow tot he area, helping to strengthen resistance and clear away infections[254]. One or two drops put into the eyes is said to be of use in removing cataracts and also in the treatment of conjunctivitis[4, 61, 100, 254]. This remedy should only be used under the supervision of a trained practitioner[254].
The plant contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are highly toxic to the liver so the plant should not be used internally[254].

We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.

Other Uses

Hedge.

The plant is very tolerant of maritime exposure and can be grown as a dwarf windbreak hedge. It is fairly slow growing, though, and apt to be short-lived[K].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in a sunny position in most well-drained moderately fertile soils[200]. Requires a well-drained sandy soil[187]. Established plants are drought resistant[190]. Plants are fairly tolerant of maritime exposure[K].
A very ornamental plant, it is not fully hardy in the colder areas of Britain[166], tolerating temperatures down to about -10° c[187].
Plants quickly become straggly if unpruned and also tend to be fairly short-lived and are best replaced every few years.

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. Only just cover the seed and do not allow the compost to dry out. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 8cm with a heel, July/August in a frame. Overwinter in a cold frame and plant out in late spring.
Cuttings of mature wood, November in a greenhouse.
Division in 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.
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[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 Cineraria maritima (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.

References for Senecio bicolor (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names 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.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Senecio bicolor ssp. cineraria (a possible synonym).

[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.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for Senecio cineraria subsp. cineraria (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic 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.

[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.

[45] Polunin. O. Flowers of Greece and the Balkans. Oxford University Press 1980 ISBN 0-19-217626-9
A good pocket flora, it also lists quite a few plant uses.

[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.

[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.

[166] Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990
A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.

[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.

[190] Chatto. B. The Dry Garden. Dent 1982 ISBN 0460045512
A good list of drought resistant plants with details on how to grow them.

[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.

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