Wallflower

Cheiranthus cheiri

COMMON NAMES

• English Wallflower
• Handflower
• Wallflower

Wallflower - a short-lived perennial with erect stems growing up to 2 1/2 feet tall. Narrow oblong to lance-shaped leaves 3 inches long are arranged alternately along the stems. Fragrant flowers (May-June), 1 inch across and with four rounded petals, range in color from yellow to orange to yellowish brown. Like other mustards, wallflower produces long narrow siliques, or many-seeded capsules, after flowering. They grow in elongated clusters at the ends of the stems.

Young women relegated to the sidelines at social functions are often called wallflowers, perhaps because they, like the plant, have the habit of clinging to walls. Long ago, however, this sweet -smelling plant had more romantic associations. In 14th-century Scotland, the story goes, Elizabeth, daughter of the earl of March, dropped a wallflower from her castle window as a signal to her beloved, the son of an enemy clan, that she was ready to elope. As she made her escape, she fell to her death. Her unhappy lover placed a wallflower in his cap and left Scotland forever. The plant thereafter became a symbol of adversity in love.

Ever since the time of the Greek physician Galen (about A.D. 130-200), doctors have acknowledged wallflower's medicinal attributes. Wallflower was used to promote menstruation, relieve pain in childbirth, clear up cataracts, and cleanse the kidneys and liver. The 17th-century English herbalist Nicholas Culpeper also mentioned wallflower as a treatment for palsy and apoplexy. Early in the 20th century, pharmacologists discovered that wallflower's seeds, leaves, and flowers contain a substance, similar to digitalis, that acts on the heart. Wallflower is therefore not recommended for domestic use.

PARTS USED

Leaves, flowers.

USES

Although wallflower was formerly used as a diuretic, there was no understanding of its powerful effect on the heart. In small doses wallflower is cardiotonic, supporting a failing heart in a manner similar to foxglove. In more than small doses wallflower is toxic, and is therefore rarely used.

HABITAT AND CULTIVATION

Native to southern Europe, wallflower is now found throughout the continent. Wallflower grows on cliffs and old walls, and is a common garden plant.

CONSTITUENTS

Wallflower contains cheiranthin and other cardio-active glycosides.

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