Wild Liquorice (Glycyrrhiza lepidota)

Family: Fabaceae or Leguminosae | Edibility: Edible (2/5)

Glycyrrhiza lepidota is a PERENNIAL growing to 1 m (3ft 3in). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 4. It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. It can fix Nitrogen. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves, Roots/Tubers

Harvest Seasons: Spring, Early Summer, Late Summer, Fall, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

sweet and fleshy, when slow roasted they are said to taste like sweet potatoes. — Root - raw or cooked.; Long, sweet and fleshy, when slow roasted they are said to taste like sweet potatoes.; They can be used as a flavouring in other foods and can also be chewed raw as a masticatory, making an excellent tooth cleaner and also very good for teething children.; The root contains 6% glycyrrhizin, a substance that is 50 times sweeter than sugar.

Habitat & North American Range

Cultivated ground, waste places, roadsides, prairies, gravelly river bottoms and moist mountain draws to 2,100 metres. Usually grows in patches, frequently in heavy clay and saline soils. (Zone 3, Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9)