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Habitats
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Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Cultivated Beds;
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Edible Uses
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Edible Parts: Flowers; Leaves; Root; Seed; Stem.
Edible Uses: Condiment; Tea.
Leaves and stems - raw or cooked[2, 4, 14, 21]. Used as a savoury flavouring in salads, soups, stews etc, imparting a yeasty/celery flavour[9, 52]. The leaves can be used fresh or dried and are available from late winter until late autumn. To ensure a good supply of the leaves in the summer, it is best to cut the plants down to the ground when flowering in the summer[K]. The young stem can be blanched and used like celery in salads or as a savoury flavouring in cooked foods[52, 183]. Seed - raw or cooked. A strong yeasty flavour, it is used as a flavouring in cakes, soups, salads etc[2, 21, 46, 200]. It can be used whole or ground into a powder. Root - cooked. A strong savoury taste, it can be used as a flavouring[142] or cooked as a vegetable[200]. It is best grated[200]. Best used when 2 - 3 years old[142]. Flowers[183]. No more details are given. A tea is made from the dried leaves. A strong savoury flavour, it tastes more like a broth[21, 183]. A tea can also be made from the grated roots[183]. An essential oil from the root is used commercially as a food flavouring[183, 238]. Yields of 0.5% are obtained[7].
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Medicinal Uses
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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.
Antispasmodic; Aromatic; Carminative; Diaphoretic; Digestive; Diuretic; Emmenagogue; Expectorant; Skin; Stimulant; Stomachic.
Lovage is a warming and tonic herb for the digestive and respiratory systems. It is used primarily in the treatment of indigestion, poor appetite, wind, colic and bronchitis[254]. The roots, leaves and fruits are antispasmodic, aromatic, carminative, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, mildly expectorant and stimulant[4, 7, 21, 46, 165, 238]. They are used internally in the treatment of disordered stomachs, especially cases of colic and flatulence in children, kidney stones, cystitis, painful menstruation and slow labour[4, 238]. Externally, the root is used in the treatment of sore throats and aphthous ulcers[238]. The roots of plants 3 years old can be harvested in early spring or in the autumn and are used fresh or dried[9, 238]. The leaves are harvested before the plant comes into flower and either distilled for their oil or dried for later use[238]. The leaves, either eaten in salads or dried and infused as a tea, have been used as an emmenagogue[4]. The essential oil from the seeds is used by aromatherapists to remove freckles and spots from the face[244]. The German Commission E Monographs, a therapeutic guide to herbal medicine, approve Levisticum officinale - Lovage for infections of the urinary tract, kidney and bladder stones (see [302] for critics of commission E).
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Other Uses
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Essential.
An essential oil from the plant is used in perfumery[7, 238].
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Cultivation details
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An easily grown plant, it prefers a rich moist but well-drained soil in a sunny position[4, 52], though it tolerates some shade[14]. Lovage has very aromatic leaves. It is often grown in the herb garden as a culinary herb[7] and is occasionally grown commercially as a food flavouring[K]. If the plant is cut back to the ground during the growing season it will produce a new flush of young leaves[200]. If the weather is dry at this time, it will be necessary to water the plants in order to encourage fresh growth[K]. Lovage is a good companion plant, improving the health and flavour of other plants growing nearby[14, 20]. The flowers are very attractive to bees and also draw insect predators such as hoverflies into the garden[24].
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Propagation
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Seed - sow spring or early autumn in a cold frame. The seed can be slow to germinate so it is probably best sown as soon as it is ripe[K]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer. Division in spring or autumn. This can be quite hard work due to the size of the roots but the plant grows away very well afterwards. 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.
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 You can download this page as a PDF
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Links / References
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[K] Ken Fern Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
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[2]Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World.
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Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
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[4]Grieve. A Modern Herbal.
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Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
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[7]Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants.
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Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
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[9]Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants.
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Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.
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[14]Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs.
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A good herbal.
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[20]Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening.
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Fairly good.
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[21]Lust. J. The Herb Book.
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Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.
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[24]Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden.
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Fairly good with lots of ideas about creating wildlife areas in the garden.
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[46]Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants.
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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.
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[52]Larkcom. J. Salads all the Year Round.
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A good and comprehensive guide to temperate salad plants, with full organic details of cultivation.
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[142]Brouk. B. Plants Consumed by Man.
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Readable but not very comprehensive.
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[165]Mills. S. Y. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.
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An excellent small herbal.
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[183]Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants.
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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.
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[200]Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
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Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
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[238]Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses.
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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.
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[244]Phillips. R. & Foy. N. Herbs
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Deals with all types of herbs including medicinal, culinary, scented and dye plants. Excellent photographs with quite good information on each plant.
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[254]Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants
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An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
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[301]Karalliedde. L. and Gawarammana. I. Traditional Herbal Medicines
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A guide to the safer use of herbal medicines.
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[302]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Commission E
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commission_E
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Subject : Levisticum officinale
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