Vilmorin’s The Vegetable Garden Describes Salad Burnet As A Hardy, Perennial Herb Valued For Its Resilient Nature And Delicate, Cucumber-Flavoured Leaves.
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I grow Salad Burnet in my garden and it isa much as described by Vilmorin. But for most people it is not a vegetable for growing today, it is a “weed” of the countryside. In my view they really don’t know what they are missing! I’ve written about Salad Burnet elsewhere but below is Salad Burnet According to Vilmorin.
Native of Europe.—Perennial.—Radical leaves, pinnate, with an odd leaflet ; leaflets oval-rounded, very much toothed; stems usually very erect, 16 inch to 2 ft. high, angular, branching, and ending in spikes of female flowers, the flower at the base being male or hermaphrodite; seeds oval, four-angled, with more or less prominent ridges on the angles, and reticulated on the sides. Their germinating power lasts for three years. The Salad Burnet is an exceedingly hardy and long-lived plant, and grows wild through the greater part of France.
Culture
The seed is sown in spring or at the end of summer, usually in drills 10 to 12 in. apart. It is often grown as an edging to beds of other vegetables, and may also be sown in beds by itself. The plants do not require any attention. The leaves are cut for use with a knife or sickle, and successional cuttings are made so as to have a constant supply of fresh young leaves. Leaves are produced in greater abundance and for a longer time if the plants are not allowed to flower.
Uses
The young, tender leaves are used as salad; they have a peculiar flavour, resembling that of the Green Cucumber.
