Garden Ruta- Ruta graveolens

Description of garden ruta:

Ruta graveolens L. Rutaceae – Rutaceae Semi-shrub growing from half a metre to a metre in height. Cylindrical, oil green stems with smooth, branched, egg-shaped leaves on branches. Flowers greenish-yellow.

Occurrence:

Native to southern Europe. It is grown in gardens and is sometimes found wild in southern Europe.

Part to be collected:

Leaves and tip shoots are collected before flowering, in June and July.

Active ingredient:

Essential oil.

Cultivation:

Not fussy about soil. Propagation by sowing seeds in spring or summer. The plants are planted out at a distance of 40-50 cm between the rows. One acre of seed requires 280 g of seed. Yield is 4-5 q (quintals) of dry leaves per acre.

Harvesting and drying:

Leaves and herbage collected just before flowering are dried in a shady, airy place.

Processing and marketing:

Formerly official in our Pharmacopoeia, it is now only an ingredient in some special tea blends. It is also used in folk medicine. Source: Dr. Ferenc Darvas and Dr Gyula Magyary-Kossa,Domestic herbs, their production, marketing, effects and medicinal uses Béla Páter, Wild medicinal plants, their production, use, distribution, and marketing