Cabbage Thistle - Cirsium oleraceum Cabbage Thistle - Cirsium oleraceum
Foto: botanika.wendys.cz

Herb: Cabbage Thistle


Latin name: Cirsium oleraceum


Synonyms: Cnicus oleraceus


Family: Compositae



Edible parts of Cabbage Thistle:

Young leaves - cooked and used as a vegetable. Root - cooked. Harvested before the plant flowers, it was formerly used as a table vegetable. The root is likely to be rich in inulin, a starch that cannot be digested by humans. This starch thus passes straight through the digestive system and, in some people, ferments to produce flatulence.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Perennial


Height:
120 cm
(4 feet)

Flowering:
July to
September

Habitat of the herb:

Marshes, fens, streamsides and wet woods in Britain, avoiding acid soils.

Other uses of Cabbage Thistle:

The seed fluff is used as a tinder. The seed of all species of thistles yields a good oil by expression. No details of potential yields etc are given.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - sow early spring or autumn in situ. Germination usually takes place within 2 - 8 weeks at 20°C. Division in spring or autumn.

Cultivation of Cabbage Thistle:

Marshes, fens, streamsides and wet woods in Britain, avoiding acid soils.

Medicinal use of the herb:

None known

Known hazards of Cirsium oleraceum:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.