Practical
Plants

Montia fontana

Water Blinks

an annual or perennial member of the Montia genus in the family Portulacaceae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Genus
Montia
Life cycle
annual, perennial
Height
0.5 m
Fertility
Self fertile, Insects, Cleistogamous
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Insects, Cleistogamous

Uses

Edible uses

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

Leaves - raw[4][5][2][3]. Fairly bland, they are quite nice in a salad. The leaves can turn bitter in summer, especially if the plant is growing in a hot dry position.

Plant part
Leaves

Environment

Range
Temperate regions throughout the world, including Britain.
Habitat
Streamsides, springs, flushes, wet places among rocks, moist pastures etc, especially on non-calcareous soils[1]. It is also found in arable fields in S.W. England[1].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
aquatic
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 spring or autumn in situ. The seed usually germinates rapidly.

Cultivation

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

Prefers a moist peaty soil. A polymorphic species[1].

References

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

    ↩1↩2↩3

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

    ↩

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

    ↩

  4. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩

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

    ↩

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