Cardamine pentaphyllos

Cardamine pentaphyllos

The nine-leaved toothwort, nine-leaved coralwort, or drooping bittercress (Cardamine pentaphyllos (L.) Crantz) is a herbaceous species belonging to the Brassicaceae family.

Systematics –
Domain Eukaryota,
Kingdom Plantae,
Division Magnoliophyta,
Class Magnoliopsida,
Order Capparales,
Family Brassicaceae,
Genus Cardamine,
Species C. pentaphyllos.
The term is a basionym:
– Dentaria pentaphyllos L. (1753).
The terms are synonymous:
– Cardamine clusiana (Rchb.) Hayek;
– Cardamine digitata (Lam.) O.E.Schulz;
– Cardamine digitata var. glabra O.E.Schulz;
– Cardamine digitata var. pubescens (Schmidely) O.E.Schulz;
– Crucifera pentaphylla (L.) E.H.L.Krause;
– Dentaria clusiana Rchb.;
– Dentaria digitata Lam.;
– Dentaria digitata f. pubescens Schmidely;

Etymology –
The term Cardamine comes from the Greek καρδαμίνη kardamíne (in Dioscorides) formed, according to Linnaeus, from κάρ car (heart) and δαμάω domo (to tame, to conquer) for the supposed positive effects in heart disease.
The specific epithet pentaphyllos comes from the Greek πέντε pénte five and from φύλλον phýllon leaf: with leaves made up of five leaflets.

Geographic Distribution and Habitat –
Cardamine pentaphyllos is a species native to the mountains of southern Europe, especially on the mountain ranges of southern Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula, to the Alps, to the Balkans, and probably the Caucasus and Anatolia. In Italy it is present in all the northern regions and in Tuscany; the regional distribution extends to almost all the mountainous areas of Friuli, with gaps in the Julian Alps and with several stations in the upper Friulian plain, especially in the province of Pordenone.
Its habitat is that of humid deciduous broadleaf forests, especially in beech forests and ravines, where it is found in humid mixed forests with deep soil, and above all it is abundant in beech forests on calcareous substrates, from 500 to 1700 m, and rarely descends below 400-500 m; its optimum is in the mountain belt.

Description –
Cardamine pentaphyllos is a perennial herbaceous plant, growing up to 50 cm tall, with a creeping rhizome with small dark scales 5-8 mm long, from which glabrous, unbranched stems emerge, reddened on the lower part.
The basal leaves are petiolate, alternate, with 5 oval-lanceolate segments, with a doubly serrated edge. The cauline leaves are similar, but with shorter petioles, and decreasing towards the top.
The inflorescences are corymbose racemes, with 7-15 flowers on elongated pedicels at fruiting.
The flowers are actinomorphic, with a calyx formed by 7-8 mm long sepals and a corolla with 4 petals arranged in a cross, 17-23 mm long, violet or pale purple, pink or white in colour. The stamens are 6, shorter than the petals and the ovary is superior. Flowering occurs from April to June. The fruits are 4-7 cm long siliques.
The seeds are light brown, numerous and ovoid in shape.

Cultivation –
Cardamine pentaphyllos is a plant that, due to the beauty of its leaves, flowers and rusticity, is grown as an ornamental plant, resistant to parasites, easy to grow.
In fact, it is grown in the open ground in gardens, on the terrace or in the courtyard in containers or in pots. It prefers shade or partial shade and fairly humid soil, rich in humus, although it adapts to other soils as long as they are humid.
In spring it sprouts with new stems.
The plant propagates by seed in spring. The seeds germinate within 1-3 weeks at 15 °C. When the seedlings are large enough to be handled, they should be transferred to pots and grown in the shade, in a cold environment for the first two years. At the end of summer, they can be moved to the chosen locations.
It can also be propagated by dividing the rhizome in early spring or summer, after the aerial part of the plant has withered. It is, in fact, a perennial plant with an underground stem (rhizome) that emits roots and new stems every year, for this reason it is classified as a “rhizomatous geophyte”. The larger portions of the rhizome can be planted directly in the final positions, the smaller ones should be placed in containers to make them root well, and only after that, can they be transferred to the chosen destination.

Uses and Traditions –
Cardamine pentaphyllos is a plant known by various names; in Italy it is also called: “five-leaf billeri”, “five-leaf toothwort” or “five-leaf bitter cress”.
The leaves are edible, and it is also a beautiful ornamental plant, resistant to parasites, easy to grow.
It is a plant used in phytoalimurgy for its edible leaves that can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw they have a rather bitter taste that fades when cooked.
For the beauty of the leaves, for its growth capacity, for the stability of the shapes, for the color of the flowers and for the resistance to parasites, it has obtained the “Award of Garden Merit” of the Royal Horticultural Society.

Preparation Method –
Cardamine pentaphyllos is a plant grown as an ornamental but also used in the food sector and in phytoalimurgy.
The leaves are edible after cooking.
The leaves are edible and it is a plant used in phytoalimurgy for the edible leaves that can be eaten raw or cooked. Raw they have a rather bitter taste that fades when cooked.

Guido Bissanti

Sources
– Acta Plantarum – Flora delle Regioni italiane.
– Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
– Useful Tropical Plants Database.
– Conti F., Abbate G., Alessandrini A., Blasi C. (eds.), 2005. An annotated checklist of the Italian vascular flora, Palombi Editore.
– Pignatti S., 1982. Flora d’Italia, Edagricole, Bologna.
– Treben M., 2000. Health from the Pharmacy of the Lord, Advice and experiences with medicinal herbs, Ennsthaler Editore.

Photo source:
– https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/508675895/original.jpg
– https://object.jacq.org/europeana/PI/2309468.jpg

Warning: The pharmaceutical applications and alimurgic uses are indicated for informational purposes only, they do not represent in any way a medical prescription; therefore, any responsibility for their use for curative, aesthetic or nutritional purposes is declined.