Bloody

Bloodroot is a plant with white flowers

Humans need to name everything, and the ones we choose for plants are often a bit curious. One of them is the bloodroot, a herb capable of living a few years and that also produces very, very pretty white flowers.

Its ornamental value is so high that different cultivars have been created, such as the S. canadensis f. multiplex »Full» which has been given the Garden Merit Award from the Royal Horticultural Society based in London. Let's get to know her.

Origin and characteristics of bloodroot

Bloodroot is a rhizomatous herb

The term Sanguinaria refers to a genus that contains a single species: the bloodroot canadensis, which is native to eastern North America. This in turn has different subspecies, since depending on where it is found it is a plant that can vary in size as well as in the number of petals of the flower. A) Yes, its height is 20 to 50 centimeters, and its leaves are basal, with 5-7 lobes and about 20-25 centimeters wide.

Blooms during spring, when its leaves begin to sprout. They are white, they are composed of 8-12 petals and many yellow stamens emerge from the center. When they wither, back in the month of May in the northern hemisphere, the leaves continue to grow until they reach their adult size. Meanwhile, the seeds develop in pods 4-6 centimeters long, and in autumn they will have fully matured.

The Sanguinaria it is a rhizomatous plant that remains active from spring to autumn. In winter, with the arrival of frost, the aerial part (leaves) dies, but the rhizome remains intact. In this way, when the good weather returns, it can sprout again. This rhizome is also very curious, because if we have the opportunity to cut it we will see that its interior is reddish, and that a bright orange sap sprouts from it, which is where the name comes from.

What is?

This is a plant that it is used to beautify the garden or terraces. Its flowers are of a very interesting size, since they measure about 4-6 centimeters in diameter depending on the variety, and as they usually sprout in early spring, they are highly appreciated. Although they are attracted by pollinating insects such as bees, and that after pollination the petals fall off immediately, you should know that the double-flowered bloodroot (with two petals crowns) remains open for longer than the one with simple flowers.

What properties does it have?

Bloodroot is a plant whose rhizome contains an alkaloid called benzyl isoquinoline, which what it does is destroy the tissue, to the point that it can become necrotic. For this reason, its consumption is not recommended, not even your statement. An overdose of this extract can cause vomiting as well as loss of consciousness (you have more information on this topic here).

In the past, American tribes used it to lower fever, and nowadays it can be used as a dye.

Bloodroot culture

Bloodroot is a herb

Is bloodroot safe? Well, as long as the rhizome is not consumed, there is nothing to worry about. Now, if you have small children and / or pets (especially dogs, since they could dig up the plant), we do recommend not growing it, at least not in an area accessible to them.

But for the rest, if you want to know what the bloodroot's needs are, you must take the following into account:

Location

The plant will grow abroad, in bright areas. It is not necessary for it to shine directly in the sun, since in its natural habitat it is found both in shade and in open fields.

Earth

  • Flower pot: it is important that the pH of the substrate is between 5.5 and 6.5. Therefore, it is advisable to use one for acidic plants.
  • Garden: same with regard to pH. In addition, the land has to be fertile, that is, it has to be rich in organic matter.

Irrigation

La bloodroot canadensis does not withstand drought. So to avoid thirst, it will have to be watered several times a week in summer. In winter something less. The frequency will vary greatly depending on where it is being grown: in a place where it hardly rains and the temperatures are very high (above 30ºC), irrigation will be more frequent than in others where rainfall is falling throughout the year.

Multiplication

Bloodroot is an herb that blooms in spring

It is a plant that multiplies by seeds in summer, or by division of the rhizome in spring.

Plagues and diseases

In general it is quite resistant. But you have to control the slugs with diatomaceous earth, and to fungi, in particular to the Alternaria, Botrytis y Pythium with fungicides. The former causes small rounded spots to appear on the leaves, the latter covers them with a gray powder or mold, and the latter rots the roots.

Rusticity

Bloodroot resists frosts of up to -6ºC.

Do you like this plant?


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