Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus)
Flowers: July to August. Height: 60cm (24 in).
Also known as Dragonwort, the botanical names come from Greek and Latin: ‘artemisia’ for Artemis, the Greek virgin goddess of the hunt and the moon and ‘dracunculus’ from the Latin for ‘little dragon’. There was an old superstition that it could keep dragons and snakes at bay, reinforced by the serpent-like appearance of its root system. It did not come into common use in England until the 16th century.
Medicinal: From the Middle Ages onwards, European monks cultivated it for stimulating the digestive system, lowering fever, destroying worms and for curing hiccups. It was Tarragon’s extensive ‘serpentine’ root system which made medieval healers think that it was an effective cure for snakebite.
Culinary: For flavouring soups and oily foods such as fish. A 16th century botanist, Ruellius, said that “it is one of the most agreeable of salads, which requires neither salt nor vinegar, for it possesses the taste of these two condiments.’
