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Filipendula ulmaria - (L.)Maxim.

Meadowsweet

Author	(L.)Maxim.	Botanical references	17, 200
Family	Rosaceae	Genus	Filipendula
Synonyms	Spiraea ulmaria - L. Ulmaria pentapetala - Gilib.
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, temperate Asia and Mongolia.
Habitat	Wet ground in swamps, marshes, fens, wet woods and meadows, wet rock ledges and by rivers, but not on acid peats[17].
Edibility Rating	3 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	3 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 1.2m by 0.4m.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. The plant prefers neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist or wet soil.

Habitats

Woodland Garden; Dappled Shade; Shady Edge; Meadow; Bog Garden;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Flowers; Leaves; Root.

Edible Uses: Condiment; Tea.

Root - cooked[2, 141]. Young leaves - cooked as a flavouring in soups[177]. Young leaves, flowers and roots are brewed into a tea[183]. The dried leaves are used as a flavouring[12, 100], especially as a sweetener in herb teas[13, 183]. The flowers are used as a flavouring in various alcoholic beverages and in stewed fruits[183]. Adding them to wine or beer is said to make a very heady brew[244]. They are also made into a syrup which can be used in cooling drinks and fruit salads[183].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Alterative; Antiinflammatory; Antiseptic; Aromatic; Astringent; Diaphoretic; Diuretic; Homeopathy; Stomachic; Tonic.

Meadowsweet has a very long history of herbal use, it was one of the three most sacred herbs of the Druids[238]. The leaves and flowering stems are alterative, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, aromatic, astringent, diaphoretic, diuretic, stomachic and tonic[4, 9, 21, 165]. The plant is harvested in July when it is in flower and can be dried for later use[4]. The flower head contains salicylic acid, from which the drug aspirin can be synthesised[200, 238]. Unlike the extracted aspirin, which can cause gastric ulceration at high doses, the combination of constituents in meadowsweet act to protect the inner lining of the stomach and intestines whilst still providing the anti-inflammatory benefits of aspirin[254]. The herb is a valuable medicine in the treatment of diarrhoea, indeed it is considered almost specific in the treatment of children's diarrhoea[4]. It is also considered to be a useful stomachic, being used to treat hyperacidity, heartburn, gastritis and peptic ulcers, for which it is one of the most effective plant remedies[4, 238]. It is also frequently used in the treatment of afflictions of the blood[4]. Meadowsweet is also effective against the organisms causing diphtheria, dysentery and pneumonia[238]. This remedy should not be given to people who are hypersensitive to aspirin[238]. A strong decoction of the boiled root is said to be effective, when used externally, in the treatment of sores and ulcers[244]. A homeopathic remedy is made from the fresh root[9].

Other Uses

Dye; Essential; Pot-pourri; Strewing.

A black dye is obtained from the roots. It is brown[141]. A yellow dye is obtained from the plant tops[106]. An essential oil obtained from the flower buds is used in perfumery[46, 61]. The whole plant, but especially the leaves[245], was formerly used as a strewing herb, imparting an almond-like fragrance[4, 66]. Strongly aromatic, its delightful perfume would completely fill the room[244]. Both flowers and leaves have been used in pot-pourri, retaining their scent for several months. The scent of the dried flowers becoming more and more pleasant with age[245].

Scented Plants

Flowers: Fresh Dried

The flowers have a strong, sweet smell. For many people the scent is sickly. The scent improves the longer the flowers are dried[245].

Leaves: Crushed

The leaves are pleasantly aromatic when bruised.

Cultivation details

Requires a humus-rich moist soil in semi-shade[200]. Succeeds in full sun only if the soil is reliably moist throughout the growing season[200]. Dislikes dry or acid soils[1, 17]. Does well in marshy soils[24, 200]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. The flowers have a strong sweet smell[4], which for many people is sickly[245]. The leaves are also aromatic[187], though the scent is very different from the flowers[4]. The leaves are pleasantly aromatic[245]. A good bee plant[24, 30]. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[233].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in the autumn in a cold frame[1]. The seed can also be sown in a cold frame in spring, germinating best at a temperature of 10 - 13°c[200]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer if they have grown enough. If not, keep them in a cold frame for the winter and plant them out in late spring. Division in autumn or winter[200]. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Links

References

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.

[12] Loewenfeld. C. and Back. P. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles 0 ISBN 0-7153-7971-2
A handy pocket guide.

[13] Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.

[24] Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden. 0
Fairly good with lots of ideas about creating wildlife areas in the garden.

[30] Carter D. Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe. Pan 1982 ISBN 0-330-26642-x
An excellent book on Lepidoptera, it also lists their favourite food plants.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[66] Freethy. R. From Agar to Zenery. The Crowood Press 1985 ISBN 0-946284-51-2
Very readable, giving details on plant uses based on the authors own experiences.

[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.

[106] Coon. N. The Dictionary of Useful Plants. Rodale Press 1975 ISBN 0-87857-090-x
Interesting reading but short on detail.

[141] Carruthers. S. P. (Editor) Alternative Enterprises for Agriculture in the UK. Centre for Agricultural Strategy, Univ. of Reading 1986 ISBN 0704909820
Some suggested alternative commercial crops for Britain. Readable. Produced by a University study group.

[165] Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism. 0
An excellent small herbal.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[244] Phillips. R. & Foy. N. Herbs Pan Books Ltd. London. 1990 ISBN 0-330-30725-8
Deals with all types of herbs including medicinal, culinary, scented and dye plants. Excellent photographs with quite good information on each plant.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Filipendula ulmaria

terrie Sat Jul 29 2006

I am very interested in finding a photo of this Herb Meadowsweet. I had hoped that you would have a nice picture of it, but I guess the joke's on me.

Filipendula ulmaria

david Tue Aug 25 2009

Painter & Power also point out the roots are edible (but astringent) have been made into bread( A garden of Old Fashioned & Unusual Herbs 1982)

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