More Info on LovageSimilar Undetermined MusicSearch Artistopia
Biography
For|the band|Lovage (band)taxobox|name = Lovage|image = Liebstöckel.JPG|regnum = Plantae |unranked_divisio = Angiosperms |unranked_classis = Eudicots |unranked_ordo = Asterids |ordo = Apiales |familia = Apiaceae |genus = Levisticum |genus_authority = John Hill (author)|Hill |species = L. officinale |binomial = Levisticum officinale |binomial_authority = Wilhelm Daniel Joseph Koch|W.D.J.Koch Lovage IPAc-en|'|l|V|v|i-|dZ ( Levisticum officinale ) is a tall perennial plant , the sole species in the genus Levisticum , in the family Apiaceae , subfamily Apioideae, tribe Apieae.Pimenov, M. G., & Leonov, M. V. (1993). The Genera of the Umbelliferae . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. ISBN 0-947643-58-3Downie, S. R., Plunkett, G. M., Watson, M. F., Spalik, K., Katz-Downie, D. S., Valiejo-Roman, C. M., Terentieva, E. I., Troitsky, A. V., Lee, B.-Y., Lahham, J., & El-Oqlah, A. (2001). Tribes and clades within Apiaceae subfamily Apioideae: the contribution of molecular data. Edinburgh Journal of Botany 58: 301-330.
Distribution
The exact native range is disputed; some sources cite it as native to much of Europe and southwestern Asia ,Den virtuella floran: http://linnaeus.nrm.se/flora/di/apia/levis/levioff.html Levisticum officinale sv, with http://linnaeus.nrm.se/flora/di/apia/levis/levioffv.jpg map others from only the eastern Mediterranean region in southeastern Europe and southwestern Asia,Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening 3: 60. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5. and yet others only to southwestern Asia in Iran and Afghanistan , citing European populations as naturalisation (biology)|naturalised .Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). Illustrated Flora of Britain and Northern Europe . ISBN 0-340-40170-2Germplasm Resources Information Network: http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl? 22014 Levisticum officinale It has been long cultivated in Europe, the leaf|leaves being used as a herb, the roots as a vegetable, and the seeds as a spice, especially in southern European cuisine.
Characteristics
Lovage is an erect, herbaceous, perennial plant growing to 1.8–2.5 m tall, with a basal rosette of leaves and stems with further leaves, the flowers being produced in umbels at the top of the stems. The stems and leaves are shiny glabrous green to yellow-green. The larger basal leaves are up to 70& nbsp;cm long, tripinnate, with broad triangular to rhomboidal, acutely pointed leaflets with a few marginal teeth; the stem leaves are smaller, and less divided with few leaflets. The flowers are yellow to greenish-yellow, 2–3& nbsp;mm diameter, produced in globose umbels up to 10–15& nbsp;cm diameter; flowering is in late spring. The fruit is a dry two-parted schizocarp 4–7& nbsp;mm long, mature in autumn.Interactive Flora of NW Europe: http://ip30.eti.uva.nl/BIS/flora.php? selected=beschrijving& menuentry=soorten& id=3303 Levisticum officinale (Lovage)
Uses
The leaves can be used in salad s, or to make soup , and the root s can be eaten as a vegetable or grated for use in salads. Its flavor and smell is very similar to celery . Lovage tea can be applied to wounds as an antiseptic , or drunk to stimulate digestion . The seeds can be used as a spice, similar to fennel seeds. In the UK , an alcoholic lovage cordial (alcohol)|cordial is traditionally mixed with brandy in the ratio of 2:1 as a winter drink. http://www.farehamwinecellar.co.uk/0/4c7a5def1b38652380256a73004609dc.html Information on Lovage Cordial Lovage is second only to caper s in its quercetin content. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/Flav/flav.pdf USDA Database for the Flavonoid Content of Selected Foods nal.usda.gov , March 2003
The roots, which contain a heavy, volatile oil, are used as a mild aquaretic . Lovage root contains furanocoumarins which can lead to photosensitivity .citation needed|date=November 2010
Etymology
The name 'lovage' is from "love-ache", ache being a medieval name for parsley ; this is a folk etymology|folk-etymological corruption of the older French name levesche , from late Latin levisticum , in turn thought to be a corruption of the earlier Latin ligusticum , "of Liguria " (northwest Italy), where the herb was grown extensively. Oxford English Dictionary In modern botanical usage, both Latin forms are now used, for different, but closely related genera, with Levisticum for (culinary) lovage, and Ligusticum for Scots lovage, a similar species from northern Europe, and related species. In Germany and Holland, one of the common names of lovage is Maggikraut (German) or Maggiplant (Dutch) because the plant's taste is reminiscent of Maggi soup seasoning. Italian levistico , French livèche , Romanian leustean , Hungarian lestyán , Russian ???????? lyubistok , etc. In Bulgaria, it is known as ??????? deveseel . The Czech name is libecek , and the Polish name is lubczyk , both meaning 'love herb'. The name in Swedish is libbsticka . The official German name is Liebstöckel , literally 'love sticklet'.Source: http://www.dict.cc/? s=Liebst%C3%B6ckel See also German wikipedia article
