Envoy at 18:45, 16 October 2007

2007-10-16T18:45:34Z

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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Purple Salsify
| image = OysterPlant.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| genus = ''[[Tragopogon]]''
| species = '''''T. porrifolius'''''
| binomial = ''Tragopogon porrifolius''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}

'''Purple Salsify''', ''Tragopogon porrifolius'', is one of the most widely known species of the [[salsify]] [[genus]]. It is also known as '''Oyster Plant''', Vegetable Oyster, or Common Salsify, or simply as Goatsbeard or Salsify - though as these last names are also applied to other members of the genus, or to the genus as a whole, they are better avoided.

Purple Salsify is a common wildflower, native to Mediterranean regions of Europe but [[introduced species|introduced]] elsewhere, for example, into [[Great Britain]] and northern Europe, [[North America]], and southern [[Africa]]; in the [[United States]] it is now found growing wild in almost every state, including [[Hawaii]], except in the extreme south-east.

The plant grows to around 60cm in height. As in other goatsbeards, its stem is largely unbranched, and the leaves are somewhat grasslike. In Britain it flowers from June to September, but in warmer areas such as [[California]] it can be found in bloom from April. The flower head is about 5cm across, and each is surrounded by green bracts which are longer than the petals (technically, the ligules of the ray flowers). The flowers are [[hermaphrodite]], and [[pollen|pollination]] is by [[insect]]s.

The root, and sometimes the young shoots, of Purple Salsify are used as a vegetable, and historically the plant was cultivated for that purpose; it is mentioned by classical authors such as [[Pliny the Elder]]. However in modern times it has tended to be replaced by [[Spanish Salsify]] or Black Salsify as a cultivated crop. Cultivated varieties include 'White French', 'Mammoth Sandwich Island' and 'Improved Mammoth Sandwich Island'; they are generally characterised by larger or better-shaped roots. The root is noted for tasting of [[oyster]]s, from which the plant derives its alternative name of Oyster Plant; young roots can be grated for use in salads, but older roots are better cooked, and they are usually used in soups or stews. A [[latex]] derived from the root can be used as a [[chewing gum]]. The flowering shoots can be used like [[asparagus]], either raw or cooked, and the flowers can be added to salad, while the sprouted seeds can be used in salads or sandwiches.

The plant has also been used in [[herbalism]], also since classical times (it is mentioned by [[Dioscorides]]), and is claimed to have beneficial effects on the [[liver]] and [[gall bladder]]. The root is regarded as a [[diuretic]].

==External links==
*[http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?609,1938,1940 Jepson Manual treatment of the species]
*[http://elib.cs.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?where-genre=Plant&testing=123&rel-taxon=contains&where-taxon=&rel-namesoup=contains&where-namesoup=oyster+plant&where-lifeform=any&rel-location=like&where-location=&rel-country=eq&where-country=any&rel-state=eq&where-state=any&where-county=any&where-collectn=any&rel-photographer=eq&where-photographer=any&rel-kwid=equals&where-kwid= Images from the CalPhotos archive]
*[http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Tragopogon+porrifolius&CAN=LATIND Plants for a Future database entry]

[[Category:Asteraceae]]
[[Category:Root vegetables]]
[[Category:Stem vegetables]]

Purple Salsify - Revision history

Envoy at 18:45, 16 October 2007