If you would like to support this site, please consider Donating.
Useful Temperate Plants

Reseda luteola

L.

Resedaceae

+ Synonyms

Arkopoda luteola (L.) Raf.

Luteola resedoides Fuss

Luteola tinctoria Webb & Berthel.

Reseda biaui Pit.

Reseda crispata Bertol.

Reseda crispata Link

Reseda dimerocarpa (Müll.Arg.) Rouy & Foucaud

Reseda glauca Eichw.

Reseda gussonei Boiss. & Reut.

Reseda lutea gussonei (Boiss. & Reut.) Müll.Arg.

Reseda pseudovirens Friv. ex Hampe

Reseda salicifolia Gray

Reseda tinctoria Salisb.

Reseda undulata Gilib.

Reseda virescens Hornem.

Common Name: Weld

No Image.

General Information

Reseda luteola is an erect, branched or unbranched, annual to biennial plant growing from a deep taproot. It produces a rosette of leaves in its first growing season followed by a flowering stems around 30 - 130cm tall [
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.
,
74
Title
Flora of the USSR.
Publication
 
Author
Komarov. V. L.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Publisher
Israel Program for Scientific Translation
Year
1968
ISBN
-
Description
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and source of materials. At one time this plant was commonly cultivated for the dye obtained from the leaves and seed but with the advent of chemical dyes it has more or less fallen into disuse[
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 Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
,
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.
,
46
Title
Dictionary of Economic Plants.
Publication
 
Author
Uphof. J. C. Th.
Publisher
Weinheim
Year
1959
ISBN
-
Description
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
].

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.
,
74
Title
Flora of the USSR.
Publication
 
Author
Komarov. V. L.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Publisher
Israel Program for Scientific Translation
Year
1968
ISBN
-
Description
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
,
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

Central and southern Europe - Poland to Portugal eastwards through western Asia to Kazakhstan and Pakistan; N. Africa - Morocco to Egypt

Habitat

Disturbed ground, arable land, walls etc, especially on calcareous soils[
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.
]. Dry hills and grassy slopes, steppes, rivers, ravines, roadsides, weed-infested places, fallow fields, as a weed among crops[
74
Title
Flora of the USSR.
Publication
 
Author
Komarov. V. L.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Publisher
Israel Program for Scientific Translation
Year
1968
ISBN
-
Description
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
]..

Properties

Medicinal Rating *  *
Other Uses Rating *  *  *
HabitBiennial
Height1.50 m
PollinatorsBees, Insects, Self
Self-fertileYes
Cultivation StatusWild

Cultivation Details

Reseda luteola
Easily grown in any well-drained neutral to slightly alkaline soil in a sunny position or in some shade if the summers are long and hot[
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.
].
A good plant for bees and butterflies[
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.
].
Plants dislike root disturbance, they can be transplanted but care must be taken not to break the tap root[
169
Title
A Weavers Garden
Publication
 
Author
Buchanan. R.
Publisher
McGraw-Hill Contemporary
Year
1987
ISBN
0934026289
Description
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.
].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

Narcotic (mild).

The plant (part not specified) is anthelmintic, diaphoretic and diuretic. An infusion is used in the treatment of heart disease[
2031
Title
Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Central Asia and Altai
Publication
 
Author
Batsatsashvili K., Kikvidze Z. & Bussmann R.W. (Eds)
Website
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28947-8
Publisher
Springer Nature; Switzerland
Year
2020
ISBN
978-3-030-28946-1
Description
 
].

Other Uses

A deep yellow dye is obtained from the plant, it is of very good quality[
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.
,
46
Title
Dictionary of Economic Plants.
Publication
 
Author
Uphof. J. C. Th.
Publisher
Weinheim
Year
1959
ISBN
-
Description
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
,
74
Title
Flora of the USSR.
Publication
 
Author
Komarov. V. L.
Website
http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Publisher
Israel Program for Scientific Translation
Year
1968
ISBN
-
Description
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
]. The plant is harvested as the last flowers fade[
115
Title
The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Publication
 
Author
Johnson. C. P.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Written about a hundred years ago, but still a very good guide to the useful plants of Britain.
]. Most of the dye is found in the seed[
115
Title
The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Publication
 
Author
Johnson. C. P.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Written about a hundred years ago, but still a very good guide to the useful plants of Britain.
]. All parts of the plant, except the root, contain the dye[
289
Title
The National Non-Food Crops Centre Crop Database
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nnfcc.co.uk/crops/pd.cfm
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line information source, with information on over 100 species (as of 2006) of plants being investigated as bio-crops.
]. The dye is a flavone, which is a natural yellow of a phenyl benzo-pyrone structure. It is present in the plant as the glycoside or tannic esters[
289
Title
The National Non-Food Crops Centre Crop Database
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://www.nnfcc.co.uk/crops/pd.cfm
Publisher
 
Year
0
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent on-line information source, with information on over 100 species (as of 2006) of plants being investigated as bio-crops.
].

An oil is obtained from the seed, used in lighting[
100
Title
Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide.
Publication
 
Author
Polunin. O.
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Year
1969
ISBN
0192176218
Description
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.
]. It can be used as lacquer and in painting[
2031
Title
Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Central Asia and Altai
Publication
 
Author
Batsatsashvili K., Kikvidze Z. & Bussmann R.W. (Eds)
Website
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28947-8
Publisher
Springer Nature; Switzerland
Year
2020
ISBN
978-3-030-28946-1
Description
 
].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ in the spring and only just cover the seed. An autumn sowing usually succeeds in areas where winter temperatures do not fall below about -10°c[
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.
]. The seed germinates in the autumn in the wild.
Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2024-12-07. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Reseda+luteola>

Add a Comment:

If you have any useful information about this plant, please leave a comment. Comments have to be approved before they are shown here.