Perilla frutescens Seeds | Perilla
LATIN NAME: Perilla frutescens
COMMON NAME: Perilla
Plant Profile
Perilla frutescens — Perilla — is a species with genuine garden merit. Perilla is a fine, aromatic, red-leaved plant of east, and its deeply toothed, purple-red leaves have made it a familiar of warm-world gardens and kitchens for a very long time. Leaves and seeds have a fine, fresh, slightly spiced flavour, and they have a long record of use in cooking and practice of the region. It is a fine, easy, generous plant of sunny, moist, well-drained garden. While it flowers, it feeds a quiet procession of bees and hoverflies. In combination, these characteristics make a persuasive case for growing it.
Science & Biotechnology
Like other members of the Perilla group, Perilla frutescens draws steady attention from botanists and plant breeders, who value the genus both as a subject of research and as a source of garden-worthy material. Perilla has a strong and well-documented place in plant science, and leaves and seeds have been studied for a long time for their fine, aromatic oil and their place in cooking and practice of the region. Nothing exotic is required: standard seed-sowing practice, done carefully, is enough.
Uses & Benefits
Perilla works well in borders, containers and dedicated beds. Perilla is grown for fine, aromatic, purple-red leaves and small, round seeds. Leaves are used fresh in salads, pickles, wraps and wok dishes of east, and seeds are pressed for fine, golden oil of the region. Deep, purple-red colour gives plant a fine, bold look in border, and flowers pull in bees through late summer. In later seasons it demands little more than an appreciative eye.
Perilla, Zi Su, is a complete medicinal kitchen: the leaves ease colds and calm seafood reactions in Chinese medicine, the seed, Su Zi, is a classical cough herb and one of the richest plant sources of omega-3 ALA, and shiso is the soul of Japanese garnishes.
Growing from Seed
Starting Perilla from seed is simple and satisfying. Level a tray of loose seed compost, sow evenly, cover to about the seed’s own depth, and keep it moist in full light. When the young plants are big enough to handle, space them into pots or a nursery row and let them size up before their final move.
Our Take
Perilla repays a little patience at sowing time with plenty of garden presence later.
Related Reading
Gardeners who grow Perilla often pair it with these related subjects: