Description
Cichorium intybus
Upright perennial with bright blue edible flowers. We use the young leaves in salads, stir fries, fritters, pesto etc, they are bitter but a fabulous digestive herb and full of vitamins. The root can be boiled or roasted like parsnips, or roasted as a coffee substitute or used in beer brewing – it is rich in the starch inulin which can easily be converted to alcohol. It is used medicinally in the treatment of jaundice, liver enlargement, gout and rheumatism, as well as to eliminate worms.
The whole plant is a mineral accumulator can be added to a compost heap in order to speed up bacterial activity. It can be ‘chopped and dropped’ several times during the season to harvest leaves for compost or mulch. It is very nutritious for stock, containing inulin and easily digested carbohydrate minerals. The flowers yield a blue dye.
Basal rosette of leaves to 30cm, flower stalk to 100cm. 9cm pot. Certified organic plant.