Contents:
Common Names | Parts Usually Used | Plant(s) & Culture | Where Found | Biochemical Information
Legends, Myths and Stories | Warning | Bibliography
Scientific Names
- Colchicum autumnale L.
- Liliaceae
- Lily family
Common Names
- Autumn crocus
- Colchicum
- Naked ladies
- Upstart
Parts Usually Used
Bulb, seeds
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Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Meadow saffron is a perennial plant; the large bulb is dark brown on the outside and contains a white, acrid juice. It produces several lilac or purple, crocus-like flowers in the fall, followed by smooth, narrow, dark green, basal leaves and long-elliptic seed capsules the next spring.
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Where Found
Common plant found in damp meadows, marshes, roadsides, banks and woods of Europe, England, and Africa and cultivated in the United States and Canada.
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Biochemical Information
Contains the poisonous alkaloid colchicine (medically used for gout and arthritis.
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Legends, Myths and Stories
The botanical name of this plant recalls its connection with Colchis, where the great witch Medea practiced her herbal enchantments.
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Warning
The whole plant is poisonous, and small amounts of the bulb or seeds can cause death. Not for home use under any circumstances. If used, this herb must have medical supervision.
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Bibliography
The Herb Book
Herbal Gardening, compiled by The Robison York State Herb Garden, Cornell Plantations, Matthaei Botanical Gardens of the University of Michigan, University of California Botanical Garden, Berkeley., Pantheon Books, Knopf Publishing Group, New York, 1994, first edition
The Magic of Herbs
The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine
Webster’s New World Dictionary
