Herb: Parry's Bellflower


Latin name: Campanula parryi


Family: Campanulaceae (Bellflower Family)



Medicinal use of Parry's Bellflower:

The root is antiphlogistic. A poultice made from the chewed root has been applied to bruises. The plant has been taken by pregnant women who desired a female child. The dried plant has been used as a dusting powder to treat sores. The chewed blossoms have been applied to the skin as a depilatory.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Perennial


Height:
30 cm
(11 3/4 inch)

Habitat of the herb:

Moist sub-alpine meadows and other open places in mountains, 2100 - 3000 metres.

Edible parts of Parry's Bellflower:

Leaves - raw or cooked.

Other uses of the herb:

The chewed blossoms are depilatory.

Propagation of Parry's Bellflower:

Seed - surface sow spring in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 4 weeks at 18°C. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Basal cuttings in spring. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer. Division in spring or autumn. Difficult, because the long runners do not take kindly to separation from the parent plant and are difficult to establish.

Cultivation of the herb:

Moist sub-alpine meadows and other open places in mountains, 2100 - 3000 metres.

Known hazards of Campanula parryi:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.