Burdock – 10 Seeds

Burdock, (Arctium lappa), also spelled burrdock, is a genus of biennial plants in the Asteraceae family, bearing globular flower heads with prickly bracts (modified leaves). They are cultivated for their edible root in Asia and is also used as a medicinal plant. Their fruits are round burrs that stick to clothing and fur. This is an easy plant to grow either as an herbal medicine or as a vegetable.

Common Names: Greater burdock, gobō, edible burdock, lappa, beggar’s buttons, thorny burr and happy major.

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Burdock Culinary Uses
It is a popular food plant, known as gobo, in Asian cooking. Roots are eaten either raw or cooked, and leaves and stems are used like spinach. Indigenous Americans were growing burdock plants in their own vegetable gardens before the country was settled by Europeans.

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Burdock Medicinal Benefits

Burdock root has been a part of traditional medicine, particularly traditional Chinese medicine, for centuries.
Among the many burdock plant uses is in the treatment of scalp and skin problems. It is also known to be a liver treatment and stimulates the digestive system. It is a detoxifying herb and diuretic and has also been used as an antidote in some cases of poisoning. In China, the seeds are used to treat colds and cough. Medical uses of burdock stem from the plant’s use in tinctures and decoctions resulting in salves, lotions and other topical applications.

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Growing Burdock

Indoor Sowing: Cold Stratification and then direct sow seeds in Spring.

Direct Sowing:  Autumn.

• For indoor sowing, the seeds should be stratified first and then sown directly in spring after all danger of frost has passed. Alternatively the seeds can be direct sown in Autumn without cold stratification and germination will then take place the following Spring.
• For indoor sowing, first cold stratify the seeds in the fridge for 90 days. This mimics winter.
• After the cold treatment, take out the seeds and plant them directly in the garden as burdock does not transplant well, due to its taproot.
• Put seeds in the ground about 1-2 cm deep.
• Leave 10-15 cm between each seed to give them room to grow. If they’re too close, they might fight for food and water.
• Keep the soil evenly moist until germination.
• Once the seed has germinated, young plants grow quickly but it takes some time to establish a taproot of sufficient size to harvest.