Rumex acetosella seed
LATIN NAME: RUMEX ACETOSELLA
COMMON NAME: Sheep’s Sorrel, Red Sorrel, Field Sorrel
Sheep’s sorrel is a little plant with a sharp, lemony taste, and it has been gathered for its tangy leaves for centuries. It grows as a low, spreading perennial, reaching up to forty centimetres, with slender, reddish stems, small, arrowhead-shaped leaves and, in summer, slender spikes of small, reddish flowers, followed by tiny seeds. It is a plant of the poor, acid, sandy ground, growing in fields, heaths and open places, and its leaves carry a fresh, sharp, lemony flavour that has made it a traditional salad herb and spring tonic, while it has also long been one of the familiar little weeds of the wayside. Native to Eurasia, including the British Isles, it has spread across much of the world, and though gardeners have often wished it away, it has its own quiet virtues and a place in the old traditions of the countryside.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
Sheep’s sorrel has a genuine and interesting place in botanical and ecological research. As a plant of the poor, acid soils, it has been studied in ecology for its role in heaths, grasslands and disturbed ground, and researchers have examined its growth, its spread and its place in the acid-soil landscapes where it thrives, including its use as an indicator of soil acidity. Its leaves have been studied for their chemistry, since they contain oxalic acid, which gives them their sharp, lemony taste, and researchers have examined the traditional uses of the plant as a salad herb and spring tonic, as well as its chemistry and its effects. The genus Rumex is also of interest for its range of bioactive substances, and the plant’s place in traditional herbal formulas has drawn study. For a plant of such sharp character and such wide distribution, sheep’s sorrel has a steady and growing record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
To grow the Sheep’s Sorrel from seed, ecologically, sheep’s sorrel is a generous plant of the poor ground. Its small, reddish flowers feed insects, its seeds feed small birds, and its quick, spreading growth covers and holds the soil on the acid, sandy ground where it grows. Economically its value lies mainly in its traditional use as a food: the sharp, lemony leaves have been gathered for centuries as a salad herb and spring tonic and used in soups, salads and sauces, while the related cultivated sorrels are grown for their leaves as vegetables. For a grower it is an easy and interesting plant, and for a gardener it brings a tangy little leaf and a taste of the old wayside. To raise sheep’s sorrel, strew the tiny seeds over the surface of moist, free-draining compost, water them in gently, and keep them in a sunny spot until the little seedlings are up.
strew the tiny seeds over the surface of moist, free-draining compost and water them in gently, and keep the young sorrels in a sunny spot until the little seedlings are up.
LATIN NAME: Rumex acetosella
COMMON NAME: Sheeps Sorrel, Red Sorrel, Field Sorrel
Sheeps sorrel is a little plant with a sharp, lemony taste, and it has been gathered for its tangy leaves for centuries. It grows as a low, spreading perennial, reaching up to forty centimetres, with slender, reddish stems, small, arrowhead-shaped leaves and, in summer, slender spikes of small, reddish flowers, followed by tiny seeds. It is a plant of the poor, acid, sandy ground, growing in fields, heaths and open places, and its leaves have a fresh, sharp, lemony flavour that has made it a traditional salad herb and a spring tonic, while it is also a familiar little weed of the wayside.
Sheeps sorrel belongs to the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae, and it is native to Eurasia, including the British Isles. It is now widespread as a common perennial weed, growing in poor, acid, sandy and disturbed ground across much of the world. Gardeners and farmers have often wished it away, yet it has its own quiet virtues, for its tangy leaves were once a staple of the spring salad, and it is one of those plants that carries the taste of the countryside in its sharp, lemony leaves.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
Sheeps sorrel has a genuine and interesting place in both botanical and ecological research. As a plant of the poor, acid soils, it has been studied in ecology for its role in heaths, grasslands and disturbed ground, and researchers have examined its growth, its spread and its place in the acid-soil landscapes where it thrives, including studies of how it indicates the acidity of the soil. The leaves have also been studied for their chemistry, since they contain oxalic acid, which gives them their sharp, lemony taste, and researchers have examined the traditional uses of the plant as a salad herb and spring tonic, as well as its chemistry and its effects. The plant has also been studied in research on plant secondary compounds, since the genus Rumex is of interest for its range of bioactive substances. For a plant of such sharp character and such wide distribution, sheeps sorrel has a steady and growing record of research.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, sheeps sorrel is a generous plant of the poor ground. Its small, reddish flowers feed insects, its seeds feed small birds, and its quick, spreading growth covers and holds the soil on the acid, sandy ground where it grows.
Its economic value lies mainly in its traditional use as a food. The sharp, lemony leaves have been gathered for centuries as a salad herb and a spring tonic, and the plant is used as a flavouring, while the related cultivated sorrels are grown for their leaves as vegetables. For a grower, sheeps sorrel is an easy and interesting plant, and for a gardener it brings a tangy little leaf and a taste of the old wayside. The seed is small and easy — sow it on the surface of moist, free-draining compost in spring, keep it lightly watered in a sunny spot, and the little seedlings will be up within a couple of weeks, spreading into a low, tangy mat by summer.