Cow soapwort (Vaccaria hispanica)

Cow soapwort (Vaccaria hispanica)
(c) sigalgeva, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

At a glance

Lifecycle
Annual
Exposure
Full sun

Cultivation

Succeeds in any well-drained soil in a sunny position. Sometimes cultivated for its seed which is often added to wild bird foods.

Propagation

Seed - sow April in situ.

Edible uses

Leaves - used as a condiment. Seed - ground into a meal.

Medicinal uses

The seed is anodyne, discutient, diuretic, emmenagogue, galactogogue, styptic and vulnerary. The sap of the plant is said to be febrifuge and tonic. The plant is used externally to cure itch.

Habitat

A weed of cultivated fields.

Native range

C. and S. Europe, north to Belgium. An introduced and not infrequent casual in Britain.