Cichorium intybus - Chicory
 In
the late, hot summer, roadsides often appear to be fields of nothing but
Chicory and Wild Carrot. I have only seen
blue flowers, but have read that they can sometimes be pink or even white.
Though plants may be in bloom for months, only a few individual flowers
open at a time and permanently close by nightfall.
Its root can be roasted, ground and added to coffee or used as a beverage on its own. Young leaves can be boiled and eaten, and the white underground leaf parts can be added raw to salads. Yet another non indigenous plant, a variety is actually cultivated in Europe for its root as a coffee substitute and its young shoots (grown in the dark) for Belgian Endive. Though no miracle cures have been attributed to Chicory, it is often mentioned as a laxative, diuretic and general tonic and its coffee drink prescribed for jaundice and other liver ailments. |
| Family: Sunflower (Asteraceae)
Blooms: June though October Native to: Eurasia Photo Location: Top - Unknown
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