medicinal herbs
Deer Grass
Rhexia virginica

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

Herb: Deer Grass

Latin name: Rhexia virginica

Family: Melastomataceae (Melastome Family)

Medicinal use of Deer Grass:

A tea made from the leaves and stems is used as a throat cleaner.

Description of the plant:

Habitat of the herb:

Peat, wet sands and gravels to 700 metres. Usually found in moist acid sandy soils.

Edible parts of Deer Grass:

Leaves - raw or cooked. A sweetish slightly acid taste. It makes a pleasant salad. Roots - raw. They can be chopped and added to salads or used as a pleasant nut-like nibble. A sour drink is made from the leaves and stems.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. Germination should take place within 10 weeks. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold greenhouse or frame for their first winter. Plant out in late spring. Division in spring. 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 of Deer Grass:

Peat, wet sands and gravels to 700 metres. Usually found in moist acid sandy soils.

Known hazards of Rhexia virginica:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.