Aniseroot, Longstyle sweetroot
Osmorhiza longistylis
Family: Apiaceae or Umbelliferae
What it is like
Osmorhiza longistylis is a PERENNIAL growing to 1.2 m (4ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 6. It is in flower from June to July. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 1.2
Where it is found
Rich, often alluvial woods and thickets. Woods, often along the sides of streams in Texas.
Eastern N. America - Nova Scotia to Ontario, Alabama, Tennessee, Kansas and Colorado.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Root - raw or cooked. Very sweet, aromatic and fleshy. A spicy flavour similar to anise, the roots are chewed, made into a tea or used as a flavouring. Leaves and young shoots - raw. An anise flavour, they are added to salads. The green seeds have an anise flavour and are used as a flavouring in salads, the dry seeds are added to cakes etc.
Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.
Condiment: the various plants that are used as flavourings, either as herbs, spices or condiments.
Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.
Medicine
Rating: 1
A poultice of the roots are used in the treatment of boils and wounds. A tea made from the roots is stomachic. It has been used in the treatment of stomach complaints, kidney problems, amenorrhoea, general debility, to ease childbirth and also to bathe sore eyes.
Birthing aid: Used in facilitating birth, but not just to cause uterine contrctions.
Ophthalmic: Treats eye complaints.
Poultice: A moist, usually warm or hot, mass of plant material applied to the skin in the treatment of burns etc.
Stomachic: Aids and improves the action of the stomach.
Other
Rating: 1
Scented.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
Scented Plants: Plants noted for their scent
How it is grown
Succeeds in any deep moisture-retentive soil in sun or dappled shade. Plants are hardy to about -20°c. Well suited to naturalistic plantings in a woodland or wild garden. A sweetly aromatic plant. For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a clumper with limited spread. The root pattern is fibrous dividing into a large number of fine roots. The root pattern is fleshy. Thick or swollen - fibrous or tap root.
Propagating it: Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing the seed in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe if this is possible, otherwise sow it in early spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Cultivated Beds;
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness: 5-9
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist