Licorice

Licorice

Botanical name: Glycyrrhiza glabra

Life cycle: Perennial

Height: 90cm – 1.5m

Position: Full sun

Soil preference: Well drained

Description

Licorice is a hardy herbaceous perennial growing between 90 cm to 1.5 m in height. The dark green pinnate leaves are up to 15 cm long, with 9-17 leaflets giving the foliage a feather or fern like appearance. Short stalks or inflorescences of pale blue to purple pea-like flowers appear in late summer, followed by smooth, oblong seed pods. The licorice plant is stoloniferous, meaning it spreads by growing new plants. Licorice contains glycyrrhizin, a compound that gives licorice its sweet taste.  Glycyrrhizin is 30-50 times sweeter than sugar.  

Uses

Culinary – Licorice can be used in drinks or to sweeten fruit when cooking, for example rhubarb, plums, and other tart fruits. Herbal tea blends can benefit from the addition of licorice as a flavour enhancer and as a sweetener. Licorice root powder is an easy way to incorporate licorice into your cooking or regime.

Medicinal –Licorice is expectorant, demulcent, and immune boosting, helping to clear mucous from the chest in colds and flu and soothe inflamed tissues. Its demulcent effects extend to the gut, where it is used for healing ulcers and calming irritable bowel disease and gastritis.

Licorice contains plant glycosides that act similarly to the precursors of some of the body’s natural endocrine hormones. It has an adaptogenic tonic effect on the endocrine glands making it a useful addition to herbal mixes for many kinds of hormonal disorders. It has a specific affinity for the adrenal glands, supporting their function in times of increased stress.

Licorice can also be added to creams and used externally to soothe irritated skin and eczema.

Due to its sweetness and flavour, one use of licorice is to make bitter medicines more palatable.

Caution – Licorice should not be consumed in excess and not during pregnancy.

Growing conditions

Licorice prefers full sun, however, can tolerate part shade. The plant develops a spreading habit, with an extensive branching root system so it needs 1-3 meters of space. Once settled, the plants are hardy and will tolerate dry conditions. Roots can be harvested at any time of the year, but may take 2-3 years to reach a worthwhile size of 1-5 cm. The plant benefits from added mulch and well drained soils. Since the plant becomes dormant during winter, it is not frost affected.

9cm pot.

Organically grown plant in a biodegradable coir pot.