There seems to be a shortage of suppliers at the moment (I was offered
3inch tall specimen for just under a fiver and told "You can only bu one - everyone wants it at the moment and it's tricky to germinate"!)
Is there truth in the germination issue? Soaking or scarification ar recommended, I read, but surely a plant nursery should have th knowledge to succeed. And why is it in demand - has it been o Gardeners' World recently??!
Finally, any tips on best conditions to establish a clump, please
I'm four for four on mine. After a bout of damping off earlier in the season, I heat sterilized the soil, bleached the germination tray, and scarified the seeds. (They are rascally little things. I ended up holding them with needle noses and slicing at them with a small sharp knife. This is after a half dozen went airborne, while trying to cut into their hulls.) Then their germination tray with lid on, went on a hot pad on low, under grow lights. Germination took about 2 weeks.
Caution: It should be used in moderation and should not be prescribed for pregnant women or people with high blood pressure, kidney disease or taking digoxin-based medication. Prolonged usage raises the blood pressure and causes water retention. A gross overdose of the root can cause oedema, high blood pressure and congestive heart failure.
I've tried growing licorice the same way I've tried any other seeds: potting soil, washed-out pots, put seeds under a layer of dirt as thick as the seeds are, wait, water occasionally. This technique, with licorice, results in no licorice plants at all. Other plants are easier...
My current licorice plant (bought as a plant) has survived three or four Finnish winters. I'm hoping it'll take over the lawn; that's what it's done at the botanical garden 200 kms southwest of me. No luck so far, though.
All of that is VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY rare, if you speak about licorice, the root.
If you're talking about licorice, the candy: that hasn't even seen licorice root extract; it's mostly salt, sugar, flour and fennel seed oil (or aniseed oil). Problem is, you won't see the difference in most medline abstracts: to medicos, licorice candy = licorice.
Except for Finnish licorice, of course. That's the Real Stuff. Yum.
Also, of course, it's extremely easy to get high blood pressure on licorice candy: eat a pound of candy a day, or two, and watch your blood pressure go through the roof ... it'll come back down again if you use your common sense and STOP eating the bloody candy already.
And licorice is a VERY nice medicinal herb. I use it to strenghten the kidneys, strengthen the adrenals, soothe the gut, soothe the lungs, and to give a nice taste to various tea blends. I go through kilograms of the dried root every year, and have yet to see adverse effects.
In addition it's good for anybody who's been through a burnout, or who's trying to get off cortisones.
Can I get it in the States? Whatever you mean by "the real stuff"? I tried a Web search , found US distributors, but came up with a lot of terms I can't interpret in light of my experience. Ex: "Sweet" and "salty" licorice.
Is the one you're on about in solid strings, and are they soft or chewy..
The "real stuff" is *very* potent and bears no relation to the candy that us folks in the states call licorice.
I don't know if you can buy it over here. I know some Danish girls who get their mom to send it to them. They love the stuff. I think you have to be raised eating it to like it.
I don't know how medicinal the quality of licorice extract present in Finnish or Dutch licorice would compare. Though I read that nederlanders per capita are the world's number one consumer of licorice products, and from the variety of drops made I wouldn't doubt it.
Two brands I would recommend: Kokindjs or Cat's Paws.
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