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Ruta graveolens L.

Common rue (en), Rue fétide (fr), Rue odorante (fr), Rue des jardins (fr)

Species

Angiosperms > Sapindales > Rutaceae > Ruta

Characteristics

Shrub, dwarf shrub or herb, up to 1 m high. Leaves alternate, pinnate to subbipinnate, up to 100 x 60 mm; rachis stout, glandular, leaflets thick-textured, elliptical or obovate, up to 25 x 10 mm, margins entire, sometimes revolute, glabrous, densely pellucid-glandular. Flowers in terminal and axillary cymes on stout peduncles up to 90 mm long; petals 5, up to 8 mm long, yellow, clawed, limb concave with lacerate margins. Flowering time Sept.-Mar. Fruit a 4-lobed capsule, ± 5 mm long, dehiscing at apex, densely pellucid glandular, each lobe several seeded. Seeds blackish, wedge-shaped, 2 mm long, rounded at back, minutely tuberculate.
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A small shrub. It keeps growing from year to year. It grows 60-90 cm high and 60-75 cm wide. The branches are woody. The stems and leaves are waxy. The leaves are blue-green. They are finely divided and the leaflets are rounded. They have wavy edges. They have a strong aroma. The flowers are greenish-yellow. There are 4-5 petals with hairy edges. The fruit are capsules with 4 lobes and glands dotted over them.
Erect, branched at base, 3–10 dm; lvs pale green or bluish, the principal ones twice pinnatifid into oblanceolate segments; fls greenish-yellow, 1 cm wide, the pet inflexed at the tip; 2n=72, 81. Native of Europe, cult. in old-fashioned gardens and sometimes found as an escape along roadsides and in waste places. June–Aug.
Glabrous evergreen semi-shrub 35–100 cm.. Leaves alternate, pinnately compound, 6–11 cm. long, ultimate segments obovate, glaucous.. Flowers in terminal corymbs; petals 4–5, dull yellow; stamens 8 or 10.. Fruit a 4–5-locular capsule.
Life form perennial
Growth form
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention evergreen
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination entomogamy
Spread barochory
Mature width (meter) 0.5 - 1.0
Mature height (meter) 0.5 - 0.8
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) 0.5
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

A temperate plant. It is frost hardy. It suits hardiness zones 5-9. In Hobart Botanical gardens.
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Rocks, old walls and dry hills, mainly on limestone.
Light 5-8
Soil humidity 2-7
Soil texture 1-6
Soil acidity 3-7
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 5-9

Usage

The leaves are bitter and pungent and used as a potherb. They are minced and used to flavour foods and pickled. It is used to flavour sausage meat and stuffings. They are brewed into tea. The seeds are used in the preparation of palm wine. They are used in spices. It is used in some drinks. It is used to flavour Italian brandy. CAUTION: It is poisonous in large doses. It can cause skin irritation in sensitive people.
Uses dye environmental use essential oil food gene source material medicinal oil ornamental poison potherb seasoning social use spice tea
Edible leaves seeds stems
Therapeutic use Amenorrhea (flower), Anticonvulsants (flower), Arthralgia (flower), Digestive system diseases (flower), Flatulence (flower), Hysteria (flower), Menstruation-inducing agents (flower), Nervous system diseases (flower), Skin diseases (flower), Vitiligo (flower), Anthelmintic (leaf), Gastrointestinal Aid (leaf), Abdominal pain (leaf), Amenorrhea (leaf), Anthelmintics (leaf), Anticonvulsants (leaf), Anti-inflammatory agents (leaf), Antirheumatic agents (leaf), Bronchitis (leaf), Colic (leaf), Contraceptive agents (leaf), Flatulence (leaf), Hemorrhage (leaf), Hysteria (leaf), Menorrhagia (leaf), Menstruation-inducing agents (leaf), Nervous system diseases (leaf), Pain (leaf), Pruritus (leaf), Sciatica (leaf), Skin diseases (leaf), Stomach diseases (leaf), Vitiligo (leaf), Anti-bacterial agents (root), Calcium channel blockers (root), Contraceptive agents (root), Amenorrhea (seed), Anticonvulsants (seed), Arthralgia (seed), Digestive system diseases (seed), Flatulence (seed), Hysteria (seed), Menstruation-inducing agents (seed), Nervous system diseases (seed), Skin diseases (seed), Vitiligo (seed), Contraceptive agents (stem), Orthopedic Aid (unspecified), Poultice (unspecified), Sedative (unspecified), Ear Medicine (unspecified), Abortifacient (unspecified), Ache(Ear) (unspecified), Headache (unspecified), Amenorrhea (unspecified), Anaphrodisiac (unspecified), Antidote (unspecified), Apertif (unspecified), Arthritis (unspecified), Bactericide (unspecified), Bite(Bug) (unspecified), Bite(Snake) (unspecified), Cancer (unspecified), Carminative (unspecified), Cold (unspecified), Convulsion (unspecified), Cough (unspecified), Detersive (unspecified), Digestive (unspecified), Diuretic (unspecified), Earache (unspecified), Emmenagogue (unspecified), Epilepsy (unspecified), Excrescence (unspecified), Fertility (unspecified), Fever (unspecified), Hematuria (unspecified), Hemostat (unspecified), Hysteria (unspecified), Insecticide (unspecified), Malaria (unspecified), Medicine (unspecified), Narcotic (unspecified), Nervine (unspecified), Neuralgia (unspecified), Puerperium (unspecified), Resolvent (unspecified), Revulsive (unspecified), Rheumatism (unspecified), Spasm (unspecified), Spice (unspecified), Stimulant (unspecified), Toothache (unspecified), Uterotonic (unspecified), Vermifuge (unspecified), Antifertility (unspecified), Poison (unspecified), Acaricide (unspecified), Colic (unspecified), Dyspepsia (unspecified), Spermicide (unspecified), Whitlow (unspecified), Itch (unspecified), Abortifacient agents (unspecified), Anthelmintics (unspecified), Anti-infective agents, local (unspecified), Antirheumatic agents (unspecified), Counterirritant (unspecified), Menstruation-inducing agents (unspecified), Narcotics (unspecified), Parasympatholytics (unspecified), Anti-poisoning (unspecified), General tonic for rejuvenation (unspecified), Irritant (unspecified), Abortifacient agents (whole plant), Appetite stimulants (whole plant), Bronchitis (whole plant), Colic (whole plant), Cough (whole plant), Dizziness (whole plant), Flatulence (whole plant), Heart diseases (whole plant), Hysteria (whole plant), Menstruation-inducing agents (whole plant), Nervous system diseases (whole plant), Parasympatholytics (whole plant), Post-traumatic headache (whole plant), Respiratory tract infections (whole plant)
Human toxicity toxic (whole)
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Rue can be grown from seed or by cuttings.
Mode cuttings seedlings
Germination duration (days) 30 - 42
Germination temperacture (C°) 18 - 19
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) 17 - 26
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Habit

Ruta graveolens habit picture by Mladen Glavic (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens habit picture by Tomaž Jančar (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens habit picture by Basile Terre di Mezzo (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Ruta graveolens leaf picture by Alain Bigou (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens leaf picture by Thierry Bickard (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens leaf picture by Veronique (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Ruta graveolens flower picture by Alain Bigou (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens flower picture by Argüelles Lopez María (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens flower picture by Marsen Matressa (cc-by-sa)

Fruit

Ruta graveolens fruit picture by Giuseppe Raccanelli (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens fruit picture by Nicolas Lagarrigue (cc-by-sa)
Ruta graveolens fruit picture by Magalie Delalande (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Ruta graveolens world distribution map, present in Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Canada, Switzerland, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Germany, Algeria, Ecuador, Spain, France, Georgia, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Sri Lanka, Mexico, North Macedonia, Myanmar, Montenegro, Nepal, Peru, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Taiwan, Province of China, Ukraine, United States of America, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), and South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:775099-1
WFO ID wfo-0000463744
COL ID 4TT2S
BDTFX ID 58985
INPN ID 119716
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Ruta crithmifolia Ruta altera Ruta holopetala Ruta hortensis Ruta macrophylla Ruta divaricata Ruta ciliata Ruta officinalis Ruta diversifolia Ruta diversifolia Ruta subtripinnata Ruta graveolens
WorldFloraDB 2024