Practical
Plants

Bidens tripartita

Burr Marigold

an annual member of the Bidens genus in the family Compositae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Genus
Bidens
Life cycle
annual
Height
0.6 m
Spread
0.3 m
Fertility
Bees, Hover-flies
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Bees, Hover-flies

Uses

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Young leaves - cooked[1][6][8].

Plant part
Leaves

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Burr marigold is little used as a medicine nowadays, but it was once esteemed for its styptic properties being used to quickly staunch blood flow - it was often used to treat uterine haemorrhage and conditions producing blood in the urine[12]. The whole plant is antiseptic, aperient, astringent, diuretic, emmenagogue, febrifuge, narcotic, sedative, styptic and sudorific[14][15][4][10]. It is an excellent remedy for ruptured blood vessels and bleeding of any kind, and is of benefit to people with consumption[14]. It is used internally to treat bladder and kidney problems, blood in the urine, uterine bleeding, ulcerative colitis and peptic ulcers[11][12]. Externally, it is used in the treatment of alopecia[11]. It is usually combined with a carminative herb such as ginger when used to treat digestive tract ailments[12]. The plant is harvested as it comes into flower and is dried for later use[11].

Product or use
Antiseptic
Product or use
Aperient
Product or use
Astringent
Product or use
Diuretic
Product or use
Emmenagogue
Product or use
Febrifuge
Product or use
Narcotic
Product or use
Sedative
Product or use
Styptic

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Yields a black dye[7]. The part of the plant that is used is not specified. The burning herb repels insects and flies[13]. The flowers yield a yellow dye of indifferent quality when alum is used as a mordant[14][2][13].

Product or use
Dye
Product or use
Repellent

Environment

Range
Most of Europe, including Britain, north to 63°, east to W. Asia.
Habitat
Ditches, pond and lake margins, sides of streams etc[5].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
high
Hardiness
Zone 6+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow in situ during early spring and only just cover the seed. So long as the soil does not dry out, the seed usually germinates in 2 - 3 weeks at 15°c[3].

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Succeeds in any moderately fertile damp to wet soil in full sun[9][11]. The flowering heads smell like rosin or cedar when they are burnt[14]. The seed coats have reflexed prickles which allow them to adhere to clothing, animal fur etc[14]. When growing on the edge a pond, these seeds have been known to kill goldfish by adhering to their gills[14].

References

  1. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

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  2. Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.

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  3. Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan. 1988-00-00

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  4. Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.

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  5. Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00

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  6. Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984-00-00 ISBN 3874292169

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  7. Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre

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  8. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

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  9. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

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  10. Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985-00-00 ISBN 0-917256-20-4

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  11. Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995-00-00 ISBN 0-7513-020-31

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  12. Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996-00-00 ISBN 9-780751-303148

    ↩1↩2↩3

  13. Stuart. M. (Editor) The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism Orbis Publishing. London. 1979-00-00 ISBN 0-85613-067-2

    ↩1↩2

  14. Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6

  15. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

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