Practical
Plants

Pulicaria dysenterica

Fleabane

a perennial member of the Pulicaria genus in the family Compositae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
perennial
Height
0.6 m
Spread
0.6 m
Fertility
Self fertile, Bees, Flies, Self
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Bees, Flies, Self

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.

The bruised leaves have a soap-like smell[6]. They are astringent and can be used in the treatment of dysentery[6]. The root is also astringent and used in the treatment of dysentery[4]. A paste of the plant is applied externally to wounds[5].

Product or use
Astringent

Material uses

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

The plant is burnt to repel parasites[6][1].

Product or use
Repellent

Environment

Range
Europe, including Britain, from Denmark south and east to N. Africa, Caucasus and W. Asia.
Habitat
Marshes, wet meadows, ditches etc, avoiding calcareous soils[2].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
high
Hardiness
Zone 7+
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 a cold frame and only just cover the seed. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer. If you have plenty of seed then it can be sown in situ in the spring. Division in spring. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is better to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame until they are well established before planting them out in late spring or early summer.

Cultivation

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

Succeeds in an ordinary garden soil in a sunny position[3]. Plants can be invasive, spreading freely at the roots.

References

  1. Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969-00-00 ISBN 0192176218

    ↩

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

    ↩

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

    ↩

  4. Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986-00-00

    ↩

  5. Manandhar. N. P. Plants and People of Nepal Timber Press. Oregon. 2002-00-00 ISBN 0-88192-527-6

    ↩

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

    ↩1↩2↩3

Edit this page