Centaurea nigra
L.
Asteraceae
The Temperate Database is in the process of being updated, with new records being added and old ones being checked and brought up to date where necessary. This record has not yet been checked and updated.
Common Name: Black Knapweed
General Information
Centaurea nigra is a perennial plant that can grow up to 0.60 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine
Known Hazards
None known
Botanical References
17- Title
- Flora of the British Isles.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Clapham, Tutin and Warburg.
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
,
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
Range
Western Europe, including Britain, from Spain to Norway, east to Germany and Switzerland.
Habitat
Grassland, waysides, cliffs etc to 600 metres[
17- Title
- Flora of the British Isles.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Clapham, Tutin and Warburg.
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Year
- 1962
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
].
Properties
| Edibility Rating |  |
| Medicinal Rating |  |
| Habit | Perennial |
| Height | 0.60 m |
| Pollinators | Bees, Flies, Lepidoptera, Self |
| Self-fertile | Yes |
| Cultivation Status | Wild |
Cultivation Details
Succeeds in ordinary garden soil[
1- Title
- RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956
- Publication
-
- Author
- F. Chittendon.
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Year
- 1951
- ISBN
- -
- Description
- Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
,
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Prefers a well-drained fertile soil and a sunny position[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Tolerates dry, low fertility and alkaline soils[
200- Title
- The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Huxley. A.
- Publisher
- MacMillan Press
- Year
- 1992
- ISBN
- 0-333-47494-5
- Description
- Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. Established plants are tolerant of considerable neglect, thriving and even self-sowing in dense weed growth[
K- Title
- Plants for a Future
- Author
- Ken Fern
- Description
- Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[
233- Title
- Perennial Garden Plants
- Publication
-
- Author
- Thomas. G. S.
- Publisher
- J. M. Dent & Sons, London.
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0 460 86048 8
- Description
- A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.
].
Edible Uses
Flower petals - raw. Added to salads[
183- Title
- Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Facciola. S.
- Publisher
- Kampong Publications
- Year
- 1990
- ISBN
- 0-9628087-0-9
- Description
- Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
].
Medicinal
The roots and seeds are diaphoretic, diuretic, tonic and vulnerary[
4- Title
- A Modern Herbal.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Grieve.
- Publisher
- Penguin
- Year
- 1984
- ISBN
- 0-14-046-440-9
- Description
- Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
,
61- Title
- A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Usher. G.
- Publisher
- Constable
- Year
- 1974
- ISBN
- 0094579202
- Description
- Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
]. The plant once had a very high reputation as a healer of wounds[
4- Title
- A Modern Herbal.
- Publication
-
- Author
- Grieve.
- Publisher
- Penguin
- Year
- 1984
- ISBN
- 0-14-046-440-9
- Description
- Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
].
Other Uses
None known
Propagation
Seed - sow mid spring in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in the summer.
Division in autumn. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer or following spring. This should be done at least once every three years in order to maintain the vigour of the plant.
Basal cuttings in spring. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.
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Useful Temperate Plants Database 2016 by
Ken Fern,
web interface by
Ajna Fern
with help from
Richard Morris.
