Fagopyrum dibotrys

'Perennial Buckwheat'

Polygonaceae: an herbaceous perennial herb to 2m. Found in forests and cultivated soil, ditches on shady damp and fertile soils. Branched stems bearing flat lacy panicles of tiny white flowers. Blooming from July – October. The seeds are dark-blackish brown, smooth, 3-sided nuts. The leaves are broad, arrow-shaped, the upper ones clasping the stem. Stems red in autumn. Native to East Asia - China, Japan, and Himalayas.

USES:

The leaves can be eaten raw, cooked, boiled, steamed, and used like spinach. The leaves are rich in rutin, so they can make a healthy addition to the diet. The seed is rich in vitamin B6. Unfortunately, it is not freely produced in Britain.

The whole plant has anodyne, anthelmintic, antiphlogistic, carminative, depurative and febrifuge. It stimulates blood circulation properties. A decoction is used in the treatment of traumatic injuries, lumbago, menstrual irregularities, purulent infections, snake and insect bites.

GROWING INFORMATION:

Sow in autumn, overwinter outdoors, germinates in spring. Or mix seed with damp vermiculite, keep warm 3 weeks, put in fridge 6 weeks, then sprinkle mix on compost and put in cool light place.

A very tolerant and easily grown plant, preferring a rich soil in partial shade, growing very well in woodland conditions. The dormant plant is hardy to about -20°C, though the growing plant is frost tender. It is often excited into growth quite early in the year if the weather is mild, and will then be cut back by the first frost. It usually regrows quickly from the base. Perennial buckwheat is occasionally cultivated for its edible seed, though this is not produced as abundantly as in the annual members of this genus. My plant produces seed but only a small amount, but it is only in its first year.

HARVESTED:

APPROX. SEEDS