Practical
Plants

Erodium malacoides

Oval Heron's Bill

an annual or biennial member of the Erodium genus in the family Geraniaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Genus
Erodium
Life cycle
annual, biennial
Flower type
hermaphrodite

Uses

Edible uses

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

Leaves - raw or cooked[6][3].

Plant part
Leaves

Material uses

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

A green dye can be obtained from the whole plant. It does not require a mordant[2].

Product or use
Dye

Environment

Range
Europe - Mediterranean.
Habitat
Roadsides and waste places in dry open habitats[5][7].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
moderate
Soil textures
sandy, loamy
Soil pH
neutral, alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

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

Seed - sow in situ as soon as the seed is ripe in the late summer. The seed can also be sown in situ in late spring[1]. It usually germinates readily[4].

Cultivation

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

Prefers a sunny well-drained position and a limy soil or at least one that is not acid[1]. A polymorphic species[1].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

  2. Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974-00-00 ISBN 0-02-544950-8

    ↩

  3. Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952-00-00

    ↩

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

    ↩

  5. ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964-00-00

    ↩

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

    ↩

  7. Polunin. O. and Huxley. A. Flowers of the Mediterranean. Hogarth Press 1987-00-00 ISBN 0-7012-0784-1

    ↩

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