Bolboschoenus maritimus

'Sea Club-rush'

(Syn. Scirpus maritimus)

[Ex. Co. Durham, England]

Cyperaceae: a creeping, robust perennial to 1.25m. Found in brackish water margins. The stems are rough and triangular. The flowers are a tight, terminal cluster of egg-shaped spikelets, flanked by a long, leafy bract, July- Aug. leaves rough and keeled. Locally common round the British coast, but occasionally found in freshwater habitats inland.

USES:

The root can be eaten raw or cooked. Rich in starch, it is usually dried and ground into a powder.

The root has astringent and diuretic properties. It is used in the treatment of amenorrhoea, dysmenorrhoea, abdominal pain or tumours for post-partum females, abdominal distension, and indigestion.

The leaves are used in weaving and basketry.

GROWING INFORMATION:

Waterplants must be sown in waterproof plastic trays or similar containers containing a nutritious muddy compost. Fill water up to 1 cm over the top of the compost. Keep the trays at warm temperatures of approximately +22°C. Succeeds in any wet to moisture retentive ground, pond margins and shallow water in full sun or shade. Fully hardy.

HARVESTED: 2021*

 

APPROX. 50 SEEDS