Practical
Plants

Scolymus hispanicus

Spanish Salsify

a biennial or perennial member of the Scolymus genus in the family Compositae.

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Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
biennial, perennial
Height
1 m
Fertility
Insects
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Insects

Uses

Edible uses

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

Root - raw or cooked[7][4][9][2][3]. Fleshy[6]. As good as scorzonera[1]. The root has a sweet flavour[8], it makes an excellent vegetable though it is rather low yielding[K]. The roasted root is a coffee substitute[5][6]. Young leaves and leafstalks - blanched and used in salads[1][2][3][6][8]. The flowers are used to adulterate saffron (Crocus sativus) as a food colouring[1][2][3][6].

Product or use
Coffee
Product or use
Colouring
Plant part
Leaves
Plant part
Root
Plant part
Stem

Environment

Range
S.W. Europe. An occasional casual in Britain[4].
Habitat
Sandy places on cultivated and uncultivated ground[11].
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
light shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 7+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, 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 spring or autumn in situ

Cultivation

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

Grows well in an ordinary garden soil in sun or semi-shade[8]. Prefers a rich soil[10]. This species has sometimes been cultivated in the past for its edible root[1][7][4][12].

References

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

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

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

    ↩1↩2↩3

  3. Niebuhr. A. D. Herbs of Greece. Herb Society of America. 1970-00-00

    ↩1↩2↩3

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

    ↩1↩2↩3

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

    ↩

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

    ↩1↩2↩3↩4

  7. Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6

    ↩1↩2

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

    ↩1↩2↩3

  9. Vilmorin. A. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-041-8

    ↩

  10. Organ. J. Rare Vegetables for Garden and Table. Faber 1960-00-00

    ↩

  11. Polunin. O. Flowers of Greece and the Balkans. Oxford University Press 1980-00-00 ISBN 0-19-217626-9

    ↩

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

    ↩

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