RUTA GRAVEOLENS

FAMILY: RUTACEAE

“If a man be anointed with the juice of rue, the poison of wolf’s bane, mushrooms, or toadstools, the biting of serpents, stinging of scorpions, spiders, bees, hornets and wasps will not hurt him.”
— Gerard, 1597

RUE, RUTA: Used for thousands of years medicinally, by and against witches, as an antidote to poisoning, &c, its lore is impressive. Medicinally, it was used as a stomachic, emmenagogue, abortifacient (should be avoided by happily pregnant women), antihelminthic, and aromatic (to say the least). It was popularly used in treating epilepsy, skin diseases, nervous disorders and rheumatism. Highly allergenic to some people (touching the plant may produce a rash).

The rue leaf is the model for the clubs in playing card decks. The name is from the Greek reuo meaning “to set free.”

A hardy plant that grows 2-3′ tall in full sun and any soil.