Blitum bonus-henricus (syn.Chenopodium bonus-henricus), also called Good-King-Henry,[1]poor-man's asparagus, perennial goosefoot, Lincolnshire spinach, Markery,[2]English mercury, or mercury goosefoot,[3] is a species of goosefoot which is native to much of central and southern Europe.
Good-King-Henry has been grown as a vegetable in cottage gardens for hundreds of years, although this dual-purpose vegetable is now rarely grown and the species is more often considered a weed.
Description
It is an annual or perennial plant growing up to 60 centimetres (24 inches) tall.[4] The leaves are 5–10 cm (2–4 in) long and broad, triangular[4] to diamond-shaped, with a pair of broad pointed lobes near the base, with a slightly waxy, succulent texture. The flowers are produced in a tall, nearly leafless spike 10–30 cm (4–12 in) long; each flower is very small (3–5 millimetres or 1⁄8–3⁄16 inch in diameter), greenish,[4] with five sepals. The seeds are reddish-green, 2–3 mm in diameter.
Taxonomy
The species was described in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus as Chenopodium bonus-henricus in Species Plantarum.[5] Until 2012, the species was usually included in genus Chenopodium, but molecular genetical research revealed that it does not really belong to this genus. It seems to be more closely related to the genus Spinacia, and is now placed in the genus Blitum in the tribe Anserineae.[6][7][8] The scientific name Blitum bonus-henricus was first used by Ludwig Reichenbach in 1832.[9]
Synonyms basing on the same type specimen are: Agathophytum bonus-henricus (L.) Moq., Anserina bonus-henricus (L.) Dumort., Atriplex bonus-henricus (L.) Crantz, Chenopodium bonus-henricus L., Orthospermum bonus-henricus (L.) Schur, and Orthosporum bonus-henricus (L.) T. Nees.[10] Heterotypic synonyms are: Blitum perenne Bubani, Chenopodium hastatum St.-Lag., Chenopodium ruderale Kit. ex Moq., Chenopodium ruderale St.-Lag., Chenopodium sagittatum Lam., Chenopodium spinacifolium Stokes, Chenopodium triangulare Dulac, Chenopodium triangularifolia Gilib., and Orthosporum unctuosum Montandon.[11]
Distribution and habitat
It can be found throughout Britain and Europe generally, except in the southeast.[4]
Uses
Cropping can begin in spring. Some of the new shoots can be thinned out as they appear (usually from mid-spring to early summer) and cooked like asparagus. All cutting should then cease so that shoots are allowed to develop. The succulent triangular leaves may be harvested a few at a time until the end of August and eaten raw[4] or cooked like spinach.[12] The flower buds can be cooked as well.[4]
^Susy Fuentes-Bazan, Pertti Uotila, Thomas Borsch: A novel phylogeny-based generic classification for Chenopodium sensu lato, and a tribal rearrangement of Chenopodioideae (Chenopodiaceae). In: Willdenowia. Vol. 42, No. 1, 2012, p. 18.
