Andryala integrifolia

In the field we can find a great variety of plants that at first may seem the same to us, but if we get closer and observe them carefully we will realize that they show differences, often subtle, but wonderful. One of the most common herbs is Andryala integrifolia, although not because it is common it is less beautiful.

It is always highly recommended to have a wild herb corner in the garden, as it is a way to attract beneficial insects such as bees or butterflies. The Andryala integrifolia it cannot be missing in your particular herbalist. Here is your file 🙂.

Origin and characteristics

Our protagonist is a herbaceous of the Asteraceae family whose scientific name is Andryala integrifolia. It is popularly known as the dog's leg or woolly locksmith, and it is native to the Mediterranean region, where it grows in the ditches of roads, in cultivated land and in grasslands.

It grows to a height between 40 and 50 centimeters, and has alternate leaves, 6-7cm long, serrated and tomentose. The flowers are hermaphroditic, yellow in color. The fruit is a vilano with greenish hairs. As a curiosity, to say that it is a species that contains latex in its stems.

What are their cares?

If you want to have a copy, we recommend that you provide it with the following care:

Location

It is a herbaceous plant that It must be outside, in full sun. Since its roots are shallow, it can be planted near other herbs to make a beautiful carpet of wildflowers.

Earth

It can be both in a pot and in the garden, so that the soil to use will be different:

• Flower pot- No need to fiddle with blends. It will grow well in universal growing medium that you will find for sale here.
• Garden: prefers limestone soils, with good drainage. If the soil you have is not like that, don't worry: make a planting hole of about 30 x 30cm, fill it with universal growing medium and sow the seeds there directly.

Irrigation

The frequency of irrigation will vary greatly depending on the year: while in summer you will have to water very often as the land dries quickly, the rest of the time it will be time to space the waterings. In addition, it must always be borne in mind that it is easier to recover a dry plant than another that has suffered excess water, so that there are no problems the ideal is to check the humidity of the soil or substrate before proceeding to water. How to do that? Very simple: it will be enough to do any of these things:

• Insert a thin wooden stick to the bottom: if when you take it out it comes out practically clean, you will have to water.
• Weigh the pot once watered and again after a few days: wet soil weighs more than dry soil, so this difference in weight will serve as a guide to know when to water.
• Dig about two inches next to the plant: If at that depth you see that the earth has a darker color than on the surface (at ground level), and that it feels fresh, do not water.

When in doubt, it is always best to wait a couple of days or three more before supplying water. But in general you should know that it should be watered about 4 or 5 times a week in summer, and every 2-3 days the rest of the year.

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Besides water, plants need "food" in order to have good growth and development. Therefore, throughout the warm season it is advisable to pay your Andryala integrifolia once a month with ecological fertilizersand guano or herbivorous animal manure. You throw a handful around it, mix it a little with the earth and finally water it.

Multiplication

It multiplies by seeds in spring. The step by step to follow is as follows:

1. First, a pot of about 10,5cm in diameter must be filled with universal growing medium.
2. Then, it is watered consciously.
3. Afterwards, a maximum of 3 seeds are placed on the surface of the substrate, slightly separated from each other.
4. They are then covered with a thin layer of substrate, mostly so that they are not directly exposed to the light of the star king.
5. Finally, it is watered again, this time with a sprayer and the pot is placed outside in full sun.

Thus they will germinate in 2 weeks maximum.

Rusticity

Withstands cold and frosts down to -4ºC.

What uses does it have?

Apart from being able to be used as an ornamental, it has other uses:

• Culinary- Young leaves picked in fall and winter are delicious in salads.
• Medicinal: its flowers have medicinal properties that are: healing, astringent, analgesic and disinfectant. It is used in infusion.

And with this we are done. What did you think of the grass Andryala integrifolia?