medicinal herbs
Rocambole
Allium scorodoprasum

• Medicinal herbs
• Natural herbs
• Latin names
• Common names

Herb: Rocambole

Latin name: Allium scorodoprasum

Family: Alliaceae (Onion Family)

Medicinal use of Rocambole:

The plant is digestive and depurative. The bulb is used in the treatment of abscesses, amoebic dysentery, bronchitis, cholera, dysentery, influenza, skin diseases and TB.

Description of the plant:

Habitat of the herb:

Grassland and scrub on dry soils.

Edible parts of Rocambole:

Bulb - raw or cooked. A garlic substitute, it is used as a flavouring in salads, soups etc. The bulbs are smaller than garlic and have a milder flavour, they are produced at the points of the stem as well as at the base. The bulbs are 10 - 20mm in diameter. Leaves - raw or cooked. Used as a flavouring in salads etc. Flowers - raw. Used as a garnish on salads.

Other uses of the herb:

The juice of the plant is used as a moth repellent. The whole plant is said to repel insects and moles.

Propagation of Rocambole:

Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle - if you want to produce clumps more quickly then put three plants in each pot. Grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter and plant them out into their permanent positions in spring once they are growing vigorously and are large enough. Division in spring. Very easy, the plants divide successfully at any time in the growing season and the divisions can be planted straight out into their permanent positions if required.

Cultivation of the herb:

Grassland and scrub on dry soils.

Known hazards of Allium scorodoprasum:

Although no individual reports regarding this species have been seen, there have been cases of poisoning caused by the consumption, in very large quantities and by some mammals, of certain members of this genus. Dogs seem to be particularly susceptible.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.