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Common Name: Tutsan

General Information

Hypericum androsaemum is a deciduous shrub that can grow up to 1.00 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of materials..

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Western and southern Europe, including Britain, south and east to Algeria, W. Asia and the Caucasus.

Habitat

Damp woods and hedges[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Habit	Deciduous Shrub
Height	1.00 m
Pollinators	Insects, Self
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Easily grown in any reasonably good well-drained but moisture retentive soil[]. Tolerates a wide range of pH[]. Succeeds in sun or semi-shade[] but flowers better in a sunny position[]. Succeeds in dry shade and is drought tolerant when established[].
Hardy to about -20°c, but if cut back by cold weather plants can resprout from the base[].
Plants often self-sow freely[].
A number of named forms have been developed for their ornamental value[].
Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[].
The leaves are covered in pellucid dots which, when touched, release a resinous smell somewhat like goats[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The leaves are diuretic, stomachic and vulnerary[, ]. They have antiseptic properties and have been used to cover open wounds[].

Other Uses

A good ground cover plant[]. Although it is clump forming rather than spreading it increases freely by self-sowing[, ]. Plants are best spaced about 90cm apart each way[].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 10°c. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood 10 - 12 cm with a heel, mid summer in a frame. Plant out in the following spring[]
Careful division of old suckering shrubs in the dormant season.