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Common Name: Wood Sanicle

General Information

Sanicula europaea 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

The leaves contain saponins[].
Although poisonous, saponins also have a range of medicinal applications and many saponin-rich plants are used in herbalism (particularly as emetics, expectorants and febrifuges) or as sources of raw materials for the pharmaceutical industry. Saponins are also found in a number of common foods, such as many beans.
Saponins have a quite bitter flavour and are in general poorly absorbed by the human body, so most pass through without harm. They can be removed by carefully leaching in running water. Thorough cooking, and perhaps changing the cooking water once, will also normally remove most of them. However, it is not advisable to eat large quantities of raw foods that contain saponins.
Saponins are much more toxic to many cold-blooded creatures, such as fish, and hunting tribes have traditionally put large quantities of them in streams, lakes etc in order to stupefy or kill the fish and make them easy to catch[].

Botanical References

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Range

Most of Europe, including Britain, to N. Africa, the Mediterranean, E. annd W. Asia, S. Africa.

Habitat

Woods, thickets and damp places, avoiding acid soils[, , ]. Often found in chalk beechwoods and oak woods on loamy soils[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Perennial
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Bees, Flies
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Succeeds in any moist moderately fertile well-drained soil in sun or semi-shade[, ]. Strongly dislikes poor thin soils[]. Prefers a loamy or calcareous soil[, ].
The seeds are covered with little prickles, enabling them to become attached to anything that brushes against them and thus distributing the seed[].

Edible Uses

Leaves and young shoots - cooked. They contain saponins so should not be eaten in large quantities. A famine food, it is only used when all else fails[].

Medicinal

Wood sanicle used to be widely used as a herbal remedy and has a long-standing reputation for healing wounds and treating internal bleeding. The herb is traditionally thought to be detoxifying and has also been taken internally to treat skin problems[]. A potentially valuable plant, but it is little used in modern herbalism[, ].
The leaves and the root are alterative, astringent, carminative, expectorant and vulnerary[, , , , , ]. The leaves are harvested in early summer and the roots in mid to late summer, they can be dried for later use[, ]. The herb is highly esteemed in the treatment of blood disorders, where it is usually given in combination with other herbs[]. It is also taken internally in the treatment of bleeding in the stomach and intestines, the coughing up of blood, nosebleeds, chest and lung complaints, dysentery, diarrhoea etc[, ]. It can also be used as a mouth gargle for sore throats[]. Externally, it is applied to rashes, chilblains, inflammations etc[, ] and an ointment made from the plant is applied to haemorrhoids[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Stratification improves the germination rate. If possible sow the seed in the autumn, sow stored seed as early in the year as possible. It is best to sow the seed in situ in a woodland soil under trees
If seed is in short supply it is probably wise to sow it in pots of woodland soil in a shady place in a cold frame. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a shady position 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.
Division in spring. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found it best to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in a cold frame, planting them out once they are well established in the summer.