The image, above, shows the full water avens plant (Geumrivale), top right. Also shown are images of the young plant
with its edible root, left and a close-up of the flowers, bottom
right..
| Common Name: Water Avens |
| Scientific Name: Geum rivale |
| Other Names: Purple Avens, Nodding Avens, Drooping Avens, Cure-all, Water Flower and Indian Chocolate |
| Family: Rosaceae |
| Range: Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, Siberia and W. Asia. N. America. |
Physical Characteristics
Geum rivale is a hardy Perennial, growing to 30cm (1 ft) by 30cm (1 ft) in size. It is hardy to zone 3 and is not frost tender. The plant flowers from May to September and the seeds ripen from June to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite and are pollinated by bees. The plant is also self-fertile.
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| Edible Parts: Fruit, Seed |
 Edibility Rating: 3 
|
 Known Hazards: None Known.
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Welcome to the summary page for FabulousFusionFood's Wild Food guide to Water Avens along with all the Water Avens containing recipes presented on this site, with 0 recipes in total.
This is a continuation of an entire series of pages that will, I hope, allow my visitors to better navigate this site. As well as displaying recipes by name, country and region of origin I am now planning a whole series of pages where recipes can be located by meal type and main ingredient. This page gives a listing of all the Cornish recipes added to this site.
These recipes, all contain Water Avens as a major wild food ingredient.
Water Avens, Geum rivale (also known as Purple Avens, Nodding Avens, Drooping Avens, Cure-all, Water Flower and Indian Chocolate) is a flowering plant from the family Rosaceae family. It is native to much of Europe, with the exception of Mediterranean areas, as well as some parts of Central Asia and North America. It grows in bogs and damp meadows, and produces nodding red flowers from May to September.
The plant is a native perennial of slow-draining or wet soils and can tolerate mildly acidic to calcareous conditions in full sun or under partial shade. Habitats include stream sides, pond edges, damp deciduous woodland and hay meadows. It is a component of Purple moor grass and rush pastures is a type of Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in the UK. It occurs on poorly drained neutral and acidic soils of the lowlands and upland fringe. It is found in the South West of England, especially in Devon.
The root of the plant is edible and the fresh or dried root can be boiled in water to make a rather delicious chocolate-like drink. The dried root can also be used for seasoning and it suitable for both sweet and savoury dishes (it can be used for desserts, to flavour fruit soups and makes an interesting flavouring for venison-based stews). The root itself is best harvested in the spring or autumn (this is when it is most fragrant and is best drying), but fresh root can be harvested and used at any time of year. In the past, the root was used as a flavouring for ales. The dried root can be re-constituted into a paste or spread that can be served as a condiment or spread on toast. The dried root also makes an interesting flavouring for fruit jams. The root can also be candied in sugar or honey syrup to make an unusual confection.
[2]. Huxley, A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992
[3]. Tanaka, T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World.
[4]. Lim T.K. Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants, Vols 1–8.
[5]. Thomas, G. S. Perennial Garden Plants
[6]. Milner, E. Trees of Britain and Ireland
[7]. Rose, F. & O'Reilly, C. The Wild Flower Key (Revised Edition) – How to identify wild plants, trees and shrubs in Britain and Ireland
[8]. Streeter, D. & Garrard, I. The Wild Flowers of the British Isles
[9]. Clapham, A.R.; Tutin, T.G. & Moore, D.M. Flora of the British Isles
[10]. Phillips, R. Mushrooms
[10]. Phillips, R. Mushrooms
[11]. Jordan, P. & Wheeler, S. The Complete Book of Mushrooms: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Edible Mushrooms
[12]. Bunker, F.; Brodie, J.A.; Maggs, C.A. & Bunker, A. Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland.
[13]. Facciola, S. Cornucopia — A Source Book of Edible Plants
This is a continuation of an entire series of pages that will, I hope, allow my visitors to better navigate this site. As well as displaying recipes by name, country and region of origin I am now planning a whole series of pages where recipes can be located by meal type and main ingredient. This page gives a listing of all the Cornish recipes added to this site.
These recipes, all contain Water Avens as a major wild food ingredient.
Water Avens, Geum rivale (also known as Purple Avens, Nodding Avens, Drooping Avens, Cure-all, Water Flower and Indian Chocolate) is a flowering plant from the family Rosaceae family. It is native to much of Europe, with the exception of Mediterranean areas, as well as some parts of Central Asia and North America. It grows in bogs and damp meadows, and produces nodding red flowers from May to September.
The plant is a native perennial of slow-draining or wet soils and can tolerate mildly acidic to calcareous conditions in full sun or under partial shade. Habitats include stream sides, pond edges, damp deciduous woodland and hay meadows. It is a component of Purple moor grass and rush pastures is a type of Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in the UK. It occurs on poorly drained neutral and acidic soils of the lowlands and upland fringe. It is found in the South West of England, especially in Devon.
The root of the plant is edible and the fresh or dried root can be boiled in water to make a rather delicious chocolate-like drink. The dried root can also be used for seasoning and it suitable for both sweet and savoury dishes (it can be used for desserts, to flavour fruit soups and makes an interesting flavouring for venison-based stews). The root itself is best harvested in the spring or autumn (this is when it is most fragrant and is best drying), but fresh root can be harvested and used at any time of year. In the past, the root was used as a flavouring for ales. The dried root can be re-constituted into a paste or spread that can be served as a condiment or spread on toast. The dried root also makes an interesting flavouring for fruit jams. The root can also be candied in sugar or honey syrup to make an unusual confection.
References:
[1]. David Evans Notes from field observations, tastings and cookery experiments.[2]. Huxley, A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992
[3]. Tanaka, T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World.
[4]. Lim T.K. Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants, Vols 1–8.
[5]. Thomas, G. S. Perennial Garden Plants
[6]. Milner, E. Trees of Britain and Ireland
[7]. Rose, F. & O'Reilly, C. The Wild Flower Key (Revised Edition) – How to identify wild plants, trees and shrubs in Britain and Ireland
[8]. Streeter, D. & Garrard, I. The Wild Flowers of the British Isles
[9]. Clapham, A.R.; Tutin, T.G. & Moore, D.M. Flora of the British Isles
[10]. Phillips, R. Mushrooms
[10]. Phillips, R. Mushrooms
[11]. Jordan, P. & Wheeler, S. The Complete Book of Mushrooms: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Edible Mushrooms
[12]. Bunker, F.; Brodie, J.A.; Maggs, C.A. & Bunker, A. Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland.
[13]. Facciola, S. Cornucopia — A Source Book of Edible Plants
The alphabetical list of all Water Avens recipes on this site follows, (limited to 100 recipes per page). There are 0 recipes in total:
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Page 1 of 1