The previous post of the Papaveraceae was all about the genus Papaver which has all the poppies we know and love, as well as some more genera in the Sub-family Papaveroideae.
This post is all about the Sub-family The Fumarioides!
Contents:
Sub-family Fumarioideae
1) Dicentra and Lamprocapnos spp. (Neophytes)
- D. eximia or Turkey-corn
- D. formosa or Bleeding-heart
- Lamprocapnos spectabilis (Syn. Dicentra spectabilis) or Asian Bleeding-heart
2) Corydalis SPP. (Neophytes)
- C. cava or Hollowroot
- C. cheilanthifolia or Fern-leaved Corydalis FBBC
- C. solida or Bird-in-a-bush FBBC
3) Pseudofumaria spp. (Neophtes)
- P. lutea or Yellow Corydalis FBBC
- P. alba or Pale Corydalis FBBC
4) Ceratocapnos claviculata or Climbing Corydalis
5) Fumaria spp. or Fumitories
- F. bastardii or Tall Ramping-fumitory
- F. capreolata or White Ramping-fumitory
- F. densiflora or Dense-flowered Fumitory (archaeophyte)
F. muralis or Common Ramping-fumitory
- F. occidentalis or Western Ramping-fumitory
Fumaria officinalis or Common Fumitory (archaeophyte)
- F. parviflora or Fine-leaved Fumitory (archaeophyte)
- F. purpurea or Purple Ramping-fumitory
- F. reuteri or Martin’s Ramping-fumitory (neophyte)
- F. vaillantii or Few-flowered Fumitory ((archaeophyte)
Colour coding for easy reading is blue for general interest. Green for various uses of the plant and pink background for medicinal use or toxic warning! FBBC added if the plant occurs in the Birmingham & Black Country area. Pictures credit by Matt Summers, Mike Poulton and Wikipedia Commons. Information from various websites, see links.
This is just an educational blog on Ethnobotanical uses of plants and we can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects! Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Sub-family Fumarioideae
To remind ourselves:
The Poppy family or Papaveraceae has 12 genera and is split into 2 Sub-families;
- the Papaveroideae with 7 genera which includes Papaver.
- and the Fumarioideae with 5 genera.
The Papaveroideae has 2 sepals, 4(-6) showy petals, and white or yellow latex.
The distinctive flowers of subfamily Fumarioideae are unique and very attractive so several of this sub-family are grown in gardens!
‘The two subfamilies are linked by intermediates’ (Stace).
The other genera + species in subfamily Fumarioideae are:
1) Dicentra spp. and Lamprocapnus (Neophytes)
Dicentra, also known as bleeding heart, is a plant that supports a variety of wildlife, including ants, butterflies, amphibians and reptiles. The flowers are pollinated by Bumblebees and other insects with long tongues. However, the plant is toxic to humans and animals.
- Lamprocapnos spectabilis (Syn. Dicentra spectabilis) or Asian Bleeding-heart (Dmeranda in Wikipedia Commons)
2) Corydalis spp. (Neophytes)
Bees pollinate Corydalis plants, but some species of bees also rob the flowers of nectar by cutting a hole in the side of the flower.
- C. cava or Hollowroot
- C. cheilanthifolia or Fern-leaved Corydalis FBBC
- C. solida or Bird-in-a-bush FBBC
A tuber-forming perennial herb, grown in gardens and found in woodland, hedgerows, churchyards and rough grassland, and on roadsides, riverbanks and walls. It occurs as a garden escape or throw-out, and often becomes naturalized. Reproduction is by seed and tubers.
C. solida was cultivated in Britain by 1596 and was first recorded as naturalized in the wild in 1796 (Kendal, Westmorland). Its overall distribution is likely to be stable. It is now much more commonly grown than the somewhat similar C. cava.
3) Pseudofumaria spp. (Neophytes)
The plants are pollinated by bees including the Honey bee.
P. lutea or Yellow Corydalis FBBC
A perennial herb, commonly cultivated and widely naturalized in Britain, less so in Ireland. It is most frequently found rooted into the crevices of old mortared walls, pavements and other masonry, and on brick rubble and stony waste ground. Once established in an area, it can quickly colonize new sites.
P. lutea was being grown in Britain by 1596; it was first recorded in the wild in 1796 (Castleton, Derbyshire) and became widespread in the early 1800s. It has clearly increased its range in the last 60 years and consolidated its distribution in core areas.
It is native to the southern foothills of the south-western and central Alps of Italy and Switzerland, but widely introduced elsewhere.
Pseudofumaria alba or Pale Corydalis FBBC
A partially winter-green perennial herb, grown in gardens and found naturalized on walls and roofs, roadsides and in churchyards and gardens.
This is a pretty neophyte, which was cultivated in Britain by 1594; it is only occasionally grown in gardens, and is much less common than P. lutea. A friend of mine has a beautiful glaucous form which may be subsp. acaulis?
4 Ceratocapnos claviculata or Climbing Corydalis
A climbing or scrambling annual herb of freely draining acidic, mineral or peaty soils. It occurs in deciduous and coniferous woodland, including plantations, especially in clearings and in recently felled areas, under Pteridium aquilinum and other ferns and in scrub, and occasionally over rock outcrops. In Ireland, it occurs on shaded boulder slopes.
This is a native and grows well in impoverished soil under bracken, perhaps because it flowers early in the year before the fronds develop fully. It is the food plant for the weevil, Procas granulicollis and the beetle, Sirocalodes mixtus.
Pollination is by honey bees and bumblebees.
5) Fumaria spp. or Fumitories
Fumaria or Fumitory is a genus of about 60 species of annual flowering plants in the family Papaveraceae. The genus is native to Europe, Africa and Asia, most diverse in the Mediterranean region, and introduced to North, South America and Australia.
The flowers are pollinated by bees and flies.
This genus has 10 species in the B.I. of which six are native:
- F. bastardii or Tall Ramping-fumitory
- F. capreolata or White Ramping-fumitory FBBC
- F. densiflora or Dense-flowered Fumitory (archaeophyte) FBBC
F. muralis or Common Ramping-fumitory FBBC
An annual herb of arable land, gardens and hedgebanks on freely draining, acidic soils. F. muralis is the most common of the large-flowered Fumaria species in Britain and Ireland.
- F. occidentalis or Western Ramping-fumitory
- F. parviflora or Fine-leaved Fumitory (archaeophyte)
- F. purpurea or Purple Ramping-fumitory (endemic!)
- F. reuteri or Martin’s Ramping-fumitory (neophyte)
- F. vaillantii or Few-flowered Fumitory ((archaeophyte)
Fumaria officinalis or Common Fumitory (archaeophyte) FBBC
A scrambling annual herb mainly of arable fields, but also on waste ground, refuse tips, allotments, gardens and other disturbed land, most frequently encountered on calcareous soils. Most germination occurs in the spring, and the seed bank is long-lived leading to unexpected mass occurrences when soil is disturbed.
The following is said by Julian Barker in his excellent Medicinal Flora:
Fume-terre means smoke of the earth. Given the right conditions of light and bare earth, the grey-green leaves really do catch your attention as a waft of smoke. the smell of the root is acrid and can bring tears–smoke in your eyes!
The fresh or dried herb can be added to sour plant milks. A few sprays are added to each litre of liquid and left until the liquid has soured thickly. The sprays are then removed. It gives a tangy taste to the milk, acts as a preservative and prevents the rancid taste that can accompany soured milk.
Fumitory has been highly valued since at least Roman times for its tonic and blood cleansing effect upon the body. It is particularly valuable in the treatment of all visceral obstructions, particularly those of the liver, in scorbutic affections and in troublesome eruptive diseases of the skin, especially eczema (for which it can be taken internally and externally). The herb is antispasmodic, aperient, cholagogue, slightly diaphoretic, mildly diuretic, laxative and weakly tonic.
Some caution should be exercised in the use of this herb since excess doses cause hypnotic and sedative effects, especially if it is taken for more than about 8 days!