Psyllium

Plantago psyllium

Family: Plantaginaceae Annual.  Native to the Mediterranean.  This is the main official species, grown extensively in East India and sold across the continents, ending up in numerous domestic colon-cleansing products as Psyllium seed or husk powder.  It is an excellent source of cholesterol-fighting fiber, and effectively bulks the stools, helping dispel toxins and improve regularity.  Must be taken with plenty of water!  Organic field cultivation of Psyllium is a wide-open opportunity for American farmers, to supplant the often rancid foreign-grown material with freshly grown, certified organic American-grown seed. Cultivation:  The plants can be started in the greenhouse in April, transplanted out at 1  foot spacing in the middle of May and harvested by combine around the middle of August.  In warmer areas, it can be direct-seeded in the field in midspring.  We grow it with unfailing success here in Southern Oregon.  I think there has been a stigma surrounding this herb, falsely suggesting that it can only be grown in the tropics, which has effectively prevented Americans from experimenting with the crop.  Most commercially supplied seed has been rendered sterile by heating or fumigation, and therefore cannot be used as planting stock.  This is fertile seed from our own farm.  The plant grows 1 to 3 feet tall.

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