Fumaria officinalis
L.
Fumitory, Earth smoke, Wax dolls
(c) Sergey Mayorov, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Sergey Mayorov
(c) nz_willowherb, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Valerio Lazzeri, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Valerio Lazzeri
What to Eat
Edible parts: Plant - flavouring, Leaves
The fresh or dried herb works as a curdling agent for plant milks. Add a few sprays per litre of liquid and leave until the milk has soured thickly, then remove the sprays. It imparts a tangy flavour, acts as a preservative, and prevents the rancid taste that can develop in soured milk.
Known Hazards
Where to Find It
It is a temperate climate plant. It needs a light, well-drained soil. In Argentina it grows from sea level to 1,500 m above sea level.
Africa, Argentina, Asia, Australia, Balkans, Chile, Estonia, Europe, Iran, Libya, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Middle East, Mongolia, North Africa, North America, South America, Taiwan, Tasmania, Turkey, Türkiye, Uruguay,
How to Identify
A robust herb with weak stems. It is an annual plant and is sprawling or climbing. The leaves are grey-green and finely divided. They are 5-15 cm long. The flowers are pink and 7 mm long. They are in dense elongated groups.
How to Grow
Prefers a light well-drained soil in a sunny position. This plant can be a common weed in some gardens, self-sowing freely, though it is fairly easy to control by hand weeding. The flowers are seldom visited by insects, but they are self-fertile and usually set every seed.
Propagation: Sow seed in spring directly in situ. In practice, the plant self-sows freely and typically establishes and maintains itself without any intervention.
Medicinal Uses
Fumitory has been prized since at least Roman times for its tonic and blood-cleansing properties. It is especially useful for treating visceral obstructions (particularly those of the liver), scorbutic conditions, and troublesome skin diseases, especially eczema, which can be treated both internally and externally. The herb is antispasmodic, aperient, cholagogue, mildly diaphoretic, mildly diuretic, laxative, and weakly tonic. It is harvested as flowering begins in summer and can be used fresh or dried. Caution is warranted with excessive doses, as these cause hypnotic and sedative effects, particularly when the herb is taken for more than around 8 days.
Other Uses
A yellow dye is obtained from the flowers. A decoction of the herb makes a curative lotion for milk-crust on babies' scalps.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Fumaria officinalis, the common fumitory, drug fumitory or earth smoke, is a herbaceous annual flowering plant in the poppy family Papaveraceae. It is the most common species of the genus Fumaria in Western and Central Europe.
Names & Synonyms
Ahtere, Kolmekorraline hain, Sahtere
References (11)
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