Horticulture Eryngos are grown as
ornamental plants in gardens. The most widely grown species are
E. agavifolium,
E. alpinum,
E. bourgatii,
E. giganteum,
E. pandanifolium,
E. planum,
E. variifolium and
E. yuccifolium. Two
hybrids have also been selected for garden use, one being
E. ×
olivierianum (syn.
E. x
zabelii), of which there are several cultivars such as ‘Big Blue’, and the other is
E. ×
tripartitum. The species with the most cultivars is
E. planum. Overall, around 250 cultivars have been named in the genus. Some species and cultivars have gained the
Royal Horticultural Society's
Award of Garden Merit.
Medicine and food Many species of
Eryngium have been used as medicine and food.
Eryngium campestre is used as a
folk medicine in
Turkey. In Iran,
Eryngium (Boghnagh فارسی- بوقناق) is used as
herbal tea to lower blood sugar.
Eryngium creticum is a herbal remedy for
scorpion stings in
Jordan.
Eryngium elegans is used in
Argentina and
Eryngium foetidum in Latin America and South-East Asia.
Native American peoples used many species for varied purposes. Cultures worldwide have used
Eryngium extracts as
anti-inflammatory agents.
Eryngium yields an
essential oil and contains many kinds of
terpenoids,
saponins,
flavonoids,
coumarins, and
steroids. The roots, particularly those of
Eryngium maritimum, have been used as vegetables or
sweetmeats. Young shoots and leaves are sometimes used as vegetables like
asparagus.
Eryngium foetidum is used as a
culinary herb in tropical parts of the Americas and Asia. It tastes similar to
coriander or cilantro, and is sometimes mistaken for it. It may be called spiny coriander or culantro, or by its Vietnamese name of ngo gai. == References ==