the.com/gentian
the alpine flower so blue it makes the sky look insecure.
means A flowering plant of mountainous and temperate regions, famous for its intense blue blooms and its bitter roots, which are used in tonics, liqueurs, and herbal medicine.
from Named for Gentius, the last king of Illyria, who according to the Roman writer Pliny the Elder discovered the plant's medicinal powers. The Romans Latinized his name into 'gentiana,' and the flower has carried that royal credit ever since — a rare case of a wildflower keeping a king's name alive long after his kingdom vanished.
- bitter king
- Source of one of Earth's most bitter compounds
- booze flavor
- Roots give Aperol and aperitifs their edge
- named after
- King Gentius of Illyria, 2nd century BC
- slow grower
- Some species take a decade to flower
- folk medicine
- Used to settle stomachs for 3,000 years
gentian violet — antiseptic dye used medically since the 1890s, also called crystal violet
yellow gentian root — alpine plant (gentiana lutea) harvested for digestive liqueurs in europe since medieval times
spring gentian — gentiana verna, bright blue alpine flower blooming in swiss and italian mountains