Erysimum hieraciifolium

European wallflower

Brassicaceae Edible: Leaves, Shoots

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Description

Erysimum hieraciifolium is a BIENNIAL/PERENNIAL growing to 0.6 m (2ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 7. It is in flower from July to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

Edible Uses

Tender young shoots and leaves - cooked as a vegetable.

Distribution

Central and northern Europe to eastern Asia in Siberia, the Himalayas, China and Mongolia.

Where It Grows

NORTHERN AMERICA: Canada (Québec, Nova Scotia, Ontario, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, Manitoba), United States (Massachusetts, Vermont, Wisconsin) EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Belarus, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova, Ukraine, Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Romania, France

Cultivation

Prefers a position in full sun in a circumneutral soil. Succeeds in ordinary garden soils, tolerating poor and dry soils. Plants are short-lived perennials and are often biennial. A good nectar source for butterflies.