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Tragopogon porrifolius
Also called Goat's beard, Kalapi, Oyster plant, Purple Goatsbeard, Vegetable Oyster, Jerusalem Star, Oysterplant
Purple salsify is a biennial wildflower and root vegetable from the Mediterranean, grown for its edible taproot and young leaves and shoots, and for its purple flowers. Grow it from seed in open, well-drained soil in full sun and harvest the root in its first year.
Tragopogon porrifolius is a species of plant commonly known as purple or common salsify, oyster plant, vegetable oyster, Jerusalem star, Jack go to bed, goatsbeard, or simply salsify. These last two names are also applied to other species.
It grows wild in many places and is one of the most widely known species of the salsify genus, Tragopogon. It is cultivated for its ornamental flower and edible root.
The root and the young shoots of T. porrifolius can be eaten (after being boiled). The freshly grown leaves can be eaten cooked or raw. Historically, the plant was cultivated for that purpose; it is mentioned by classical authors such as Pliny the Elder. Cultivation in Europe began in the 16th century in France and Italy. In the United Kingdom it was initially grown for its flower and later became a mildly popular vegetable in the 18th century but then declined in popularity. Presently the root is cultivated and eaten most frequently in France, Germany, Italy and Russia. However, in modern times it has tended to be replaced by Spanish salsify (Scorzonera hispanica) as a cultivated crop.
Cultivated varieties include 'White French', 'Gian French', 'Mammoth Sandwich Island', 'Improved Mammoth Sandwich Island', 'Blauetikett', and 'Lüthy'; they are generally characterised by larger or better-shaped roots. To maintain the purity of the cultivar a distance of 500 ft (150 m) has to be met. When T.
Tragopogon porrifolius is a common biennial wildflower, native to southeast Europe, Mediterranean Turkey, and north Africa, but introduced elsewhere, for example, into the British Isles (mainly in central and southern England), other parts of northern Europe, North America and southern Africa, and in Australia. In the United States, it is now found growing wild in almost every state, including Hawaii, except in the extreme south-east.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Tragopogon porrifolius by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
