• Home
  • ABOUT/FAQs
  • PLANT PORTRAITS
  • PLANT PORTRAITS INDEX – Search By Botanical Name
  • THE PLANT ARCHIVES & MASTER LIST ~ 1991-2022
  • THE TOMATO ARCHIVES ~ 1991 to 2022
  • This & That
  • Welcome!

Hill Farm Nursery

Cariboo-Grown & Cariboo-Hardy Perennials. Since 1991.

Aegopodium podagraria ‘variegata’ – BISHOP’S GOUTWORT

July 16, 2014 by leavesandpages

Aegopodium podagraria

Variegated Bishop’s Goutwort – Aegopodium podagraria ‘variegata’. Penticton, B.C., June 2014. Image: HFN

Perennial. Zone 1. Apiaceae, formerly Umbelliferae.  Europe, Northeast Asia. Aka HANSEL-AND-GRETEL, JACK-JUMP-ABOUT, BISHOPSWEED, SNOW-ON-THE-MOUNTAIN, GROUND ELDER. 12 to 16  inches tall; spread infinite. Any soil, average moisture, sun to shade.

Aegopodium is derived from the Greek aix or aigos (a goat) and pous or podos (a foot), from the fancied resemblance in the shape of the leaves to a goat’s foot. Podagraria comes from the Latin word for gout, podagra, because this plant was highly valued as a treatment for that ailment in medieval times.

Goutwort is an attractively variegated pale green and ivory foliage plant, though it does produce umbels of tiny, creamy white flowers in summer.  It is an insidiously invasive but very valuable groundcover for difficult sites. A solid edging or path will generally contain it.

Avoid planting in a mixed border, as it will gobble up less rambunctious neighbours. I have had success growing it with other hold-your-own plants, namely with Lily-of-the-Valley (Convallaria majalis), Ribbon Grass (Phalaris arundinaceae ‘picta’), and Joe-Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum), but I do believe it is generally best alone, in a place where it can flourish to its (and the gardener’s) heart’s delight.

An excellent example of perfect placement of this exceediningly successful groundcover. Aegopodium podagraria grown in a shady border between a structure and a mown lawn in Penticton, B.C.  June 2014

An excellent example of perfect placement of this exceediningly successful groundcover. Aegopodium podagraria grown in a shady border between a structure and a mown lawn in Penticton, B.C., June 2014. Image: HFN

Bishop’s Goutwort is an old-time, pre-Medieval garden plant, once used in medicine and cookery. From Maude Grieve’s 1930 Modern Herbal:

 It has a creeping root-stock and by this means it spreads rapidly and soon establishes itself, smothering all vegetation less rampant than its own. It is a common pest of orchards, shrubberies and ill-kept gardens, and is found on the outskirts of almost every village or town, being indeed rarely absent from a building of some description. It is possible that Buckwheat might drive it out if planted where Goutweed has gained a hold.

It was called Bishopsweed and Bishopswort, because so frequently found near old ecclesiastical ruins. It is said to have been introduced by the monks of the Middle Ages, who cultivated it as a herb of healing. It was called Herb Gerard, because it was dedicated to St. Gerard, who was formerly invoked to cure the gout, against which the herb was chiefly employed.

The white root-stock is pungent and aromatic, but the flavour of the leaves is strong and disagreeable. (However) Linnaeus recommends the young leaves boiled and eaten as a green vegetable, as in Sweden and Switzerland, and it used also to be eaten as a spring salad.

A poultice made from the boiled leaves and roots was used with reportedly good effect as a treatment for all sorts of joint pains.

Aegopodium podagraria 'variegata'- Hill Farm, July 2011.

Aegopodium podagraria ‘variegata’– Hill Farm, July 2011. Image: HFN

Nowadays this plant is grown strictly as an ornamental, and it is a very good plant for difficult sites, as long as its land-grabbing habits are taken into consideration. Propagation of the variegated form is by division; it seldom sets viable seed. There original species is solid green, even more vigorous than its creamy-leaved sport, and a profuse self-seeder. Luckily it is not at all common in our country – the variegated version is sufficiently successful in our gardens.

Bishop’s Goutwort is frequently seen in old gardens and around abandoned homesteads. A particularly nice Cariboo planting is behind the Theatre Royal in the restored 1860s’ Gold Rush town of Barkerville, B.C., where it thrives in a lush colony hemmed in by Mountain Bluet (Centaurea montana) and Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla species), both vigorous survivor-type plants in their own right.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Posted in Perennial, Shade, Spring, Summer, White | Tagged Aegopodium podagraria 'variegata', Bishop's Goutwort, Low growing, Perennials, White |

  • Header image:

    Viola glabella. YELLOW WOOD VIOLET. Stanley, B.C., June 15, 2019.  Image: HFN

  • Recent Posts

    • Viola jooi – TRANSYLVANIAN VIOLET
    • Physochlaina orientalis – ORIENTAL PHYSOCHLAINA
    • Claytonia lanceolata – SPRING BEAUTY, MOUNTAIN POTATO
    • Lewisia rediviva – BITTERROOT
    • Cephalaria tchihatchewii – TCHIHATCHEV’S CEPHALARIA
  • Archives

  • Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

  • Contact Info

    Hill Farm Nursery is located in a rural area north of McLeese Lake, B.C. We are not set up for on-farm visitors at present,
    For 2022 you can find us at:
    WILLIAMS LAKE FARMERS' MARKET (May 6 onward)
    QUESNEL FARMERS' MARKET (May 7 to mid June)
    McLEESE LAKE FARMERS' MARKET - TBA
    1-250-297-6553 / arcadiaborealis@gmail.com
  • QUESNEL SEEDY SATURDAY 2021 - cancelled

    Seedy Saturday Quesnel - no word on this event for 2022. Maybe in 2023?
  • WILLIAMS LAKE SEEDY SATURDAY 2022 - it's on!

    Williams Lake Farmers' Market site, in the parking lot between the Cariboo Memorial Recreation Complex and Kiwanis Park.
    We're good to go! Saturday, April 30, 2022, 9 AM till 2 PM.
  • QUESNEL FARMERS' MARKET

    Helen Dixon Centre
    241 Kinchant Street
    Quesnel. B.C.
    Dates for 2022 - Saturdays, May 7 till October 15
    8:30 AM till 1 PM
  • WILLIAMS LAKE FARMERS' MARKET

    Now in the parking lot beside the Recreation Centre/Pool. Head for Kiwanis Park and you'll find the Market!
    Dates for 2022 - Fridays, May 6 till October 7, 2022
    9 AM till 2 PM
    Tuesdays, June 14 till September 27, 2022
    2 PM till 7 PM
  • McLEESE LAKE FARMERS' MARKET

    Lakeside Tourist Info Site, located between the Oasis Pub and the Oasis Cafe, and directly across from the McLeese Lake General Store.
    Dates in 2022 - TBA
    Time: 9 A.M. till 1 P.M.
  • Affiliations

    Alpine Garden Club of British Columbia
    Alpine Garden Society (Great Britain)
    David Douglas Botanical Garden Society
    Growing North Cariboo Society (F.A.R.M.E.D.)
    North American Rock Garden Society (N.A.R.G.S.)

    Perennial Plant Association (P.P.A.)

    Seeds of Diversity Canada

  • Places to Visit:

    SCOUT ISLAND NATURE CENTRE, Williams Lake, B.C. An oasis of peace on the outskirts of a bustling industrial area. Excellent trail network; something to see 365 days of the year - wildflowers, birds, aquatic life and small mammals. Nature centre, resource library, knowledgeable & enthusiastic naturalists on site.

    DAVID DOUGLAS BOTANICAL GARDEN, Prince George, B.C. Located at the University of Northern British Columbia. A small but interesting perennial flower display garden, lilac display, waterfall & bridge, and the Alice Wolczuk Alpine Garden.

    GOODSIR NATURE PARK, Salmon Valley, B.C. 20 miles north of Prince George. 160 acre private nature reserve, 6 miles of trails, open to the public May-Oct. Wildflowers & trees; an active beaver pond; plant museum, guided & self-guided tours; excellent signage; some rare plants. Picnic tables, firepits & camping available. Entry free; donations welcome.

    OSOYOOS DESERT CENTRE, Osoyoos, B.C. 2 km of boardwalk through B.C.'s rarest ecosystem, the "pocket desert." Wildflowers, birds, reptiles, small mammals. Guided & self-guided; small visitor centre.

    ANCIENT FOREST TRAIL, near Dome Creek, Robson Valley, B.C. (Along Highway 16, halfway between Prince George and McBride. Watch for large signs: "Ancient Forest".) Hiking trails through ancient cedar forest, including a recently completed 1/2 kilometer wheelchair accessible boardwalk portion. Built by dedicated volunteers; a prodigious amount of planning and sheer hard work went into this trail system, and it shows. Worth a stop to walk the boardwalk; you will be inspired to come back and hike the wilder trails as well. Huge cedar trees, ferns, water features - a prime example of B.C.'s rare and endangered Inland Rain Forest. Interpretive signage at parking lot, outhouses, well-thought-out wheelchair unloading/loading area and beautifully designed boardwalk. Donation box.

  • Image & Content Re-Use Policy

    This website represents many years of experience and many hours of labour. We are pleased to participate in the free and open transfer of information over the World Wide Web, keeping the following in mind.

    Personal non-commercial use of our text and images is warmly encouraged for all, and for our nursery customers in particular. You may copy, print and store our info for your own purposes. If sharing, we ask that you please cite Hill Farm Nursery as the source.

    All images are taken by us and most of those (but not all) have the tag HFN (for Hill Farm Nursery) in the caption.

    All written material and HFN images are copyright Hill Farm Nursery. Fellow gardeners, plant groups, societies and associations, you are welcome to re-publish our material as long as it is cited, credited and/or linked.

    COMMERCIAL RE-USE POLICY: We request that you contact us for permission for COMMERCIAL re-use of any of our written and photographic content: bscharf@uniserve.com.

    High resolution jpegs of most images on this website are available for a fee.

Blog at WordPress.com.

WPThemes.


  • Follow Following
    • Hill Farm Nursery
    • Join 74 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Hill Farm Nursery
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Copy shortlink
    • Report this content
    • View post in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: