Practical
Plants

Gentianella amarella

Felwort

a biennial member of the Gentianella genus in the family Gentianaceae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
biennial
Fertility
Bees
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Bees

Uses

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.

This species is one of several that can be used as a source of the medicinal gentian root[10]. Gentian has a long history of use as a herbal bitter in the treatment of digestive disorders. It is especially useful in states of exhaustion from chronic disease and in all cases of debility, weakness of the digestive system and lack of appetite[10]. It is one of the best strengtheners of the human system and is an excellent tonic to combine with a purgative in order to prevent its debilitating effects[10]. The root is anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, bitter tonic, cholagogue, emmenagogue, febrifuge, refrigerant and stomachic[10][11][1][8][2]. It is harvested in the autumn and dried for later use[10]. It is quite likely that the roots of plants that have not flowered are the richest in medicinal properties[10]. The root is anodyne, anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, bitter tonic, cholagogue, emmenagogue, expectorant, febrifuge, pectoral, refrigerant, stomachic. A substitute for G. lutea[10][4][5][9]. The plant is used in Bach flower remedies - the keywords for prescribing it are 'Doubt', 'Depression' and 'Discouragement[7].

Product or use
Bach

Environment

Range
Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to France, Hungary and the Caucasus.
Habitat
Basic pastures, usually amongst short grass, and dunes[3]
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
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 as soon as it is ripe in the autumn[6].

Cultivation

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

Requires a damp humus-rich soil and should be planted in a situation approaching its native habitat[6]. An aggregate species, individual plants may show unusual features and determinations should be based on small samples of the population[3].

References

  1. Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press 1979-00-00 ISBN 0-87857-262-7

    ↩

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

    ↩

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

    ↩1↩2

  4. Kariyone. T. Atlas of Medicinal Plants.

    ↩

  5. Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985-00-00

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

    ↩1↩2

  7. Chancellor. P. M. Handbook of the Bach Flower Remedies C. W. Daniel Co. Ltd. 1985-00-00 ISBN 85207 002 0

    ↩

  8. Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983-00-00 ISBN 0-553-23827-2

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

    ↩

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

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4↩5↩6↩7

  11. Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981-00-00 ISBN 0-600-37216-2

    ↩

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