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Illustration Aegopodium podagraria0 clean no-description.jpg  Aegopodium podagraria1 ies.jpg  Aegopodium podagraria RF.jpg   

 

NAME: Goutweed

SPECIES / FAMILY:  Aegopodium Podagraria / Apiaceae or Umbelliferae

OTHER COMMON NAME(S): Ground Elder, Bishop's Goutweed

CONDITIONS: partial shade
 

PARTS:

EDIBLE cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

TASTE

RAW/COOK

SEASON

All

 

 

 

 

Shoots

 

 

 

 

Leaves

cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

parsley

RAW/COOK

Spring

Buds/Flowers

       

Fruits

 

 

 

 

Roots

       

Seeds

 

 

   

Nuts

 

 

 

 

Pods

 

 

 

 

Stalk/Stem

 

 

 

 

Bark

 

 

 

 

 

PORTION:   herb/small                                         

 

COMMENT: I love this plant. It's easy to grow and I use it in many dishes as a parsley substitute. There is also a variegated variety, last photo at right.  It got its name because back in the day, people (and bishops) would get gout from eating high carb / sugary / rich foods, so they ate goutweed to balance their diet, as it is high in vitamin A and C. // Leaves - raw or cooked. An unusual tangy flavor, like parsley. The leaves are best harvested before the plant comes into flower, they can be used in salads, soups, or cooked as a vegetable. (1)  Spreads rapidly.

 

CAUTION: https://www.healthbenefitstimes.com/goutweed/ - scroll down for "Precautions", although PFAF says that there are "no known hazards" - https://www.pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?LatinName=Aegopodium+podagraria .

 

NUTRITION/MEDICINAL:  Antirheumatic;  Diuretic;  Sedative;  Vulnerary.(1)

 

LOOK-A-LIKES: Eastern waterleaf, Sweet Cicely, Aniseroot

 

POISONOUS LOOK-A-LIKES:  Poison hemlock  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conium_maculatum 


OTHER USES:
Studied for use in reclamation and phytoremediation of contaminated soils and waters.-https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26269111

 

SOURCE LINKS (may include nutritional and medicinal info, plus other uses):

  1. https://pfaf.org/user/plant.aspx?LatinName=Aegopodium+podagraria
  2. http://www.eattheweeds.com/?s=Aegopodium+podagraria+    
  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegopodium_podagraria 
  4. https://recipes.net/articles/how-to-cook-goutweed-greens
  5. https://sacredearth.com/2021/03/07/foraging-goutweed-aegopodium-podagraria
  6. https://delishably.com/foraging/Ground-Elder-Facts-Uses-Recipes
  7. https://feriantano.com/en/articles/33258-goutweed-recipes-how-to-cook-the-weeds-instead-of-fightin
  8. https://alongthegrapevine.wordpress.com/2015/10/03/chimichurri-and-goutweed (recipes)
  9. http://backyard-wildcrafting.blogspot.com/2016/07/goutweed-aegopodium-podagraria-l.html (recipes)
  10. http://3gardensinquebec.blogspot.com/2012/06/goutweed-or-tastyweed.html (recipes)