''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of ''
Ruta
''Ruta'' (commonly known as rue) is a genus of strongly scented evergreen subshrubs, 20–60 cm tall, in the family Rutaceae, native to the Mediterranean region, Macaronesia and southwest Asia. About ten species are accepted in the genus. T ...
'' grown as an
ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...
and
herb
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
. It is native to the
Balkan Peninsula
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
. It is grown throughout the world in
garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...
s, especially for its bluish leaves, and sometimes for its tolerance of hot and dry
soil
Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...
conditions. It is also
cultivated as a culinary herb, and to a lesser extent as an insect repellent and incense.
Etymology
The specific epithet ''graveolens'' refers to the strong-smelling leaves.
[J. D. Douglas and Merrill C. Tenney ]
Description
![Gardenology](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Gardenology.org-IMG_2800_rbgs11jan.jpg)
Rue is a woody,
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...
shrub. Its leaves are oblong, blue green and arranged pinnate; they release a strong aroma when they are bruised.
The flowers are small with 4 to 5 dull yellow petals in clusters. They bear brown seed capsules when pollinated.
Uses
Traditional use
In the ancient Roman world, the naturalists
Pedanius Dioscorides and
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
recommended that rue be combined with the poisonous shrub
oleander
''Nerium oleander'' ( ), most commonly known as oleander or nerium, is a shrub or small tree cultivated worldwide in temperate and subtropical areas as an ornamental and landscaping plant. It is the only species currently classified in the ge ...
to be drunk as an antidote to venomous snake bites.
![Tacuin Rue35](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Tacuin_Rue35.jpg)
The refined oil of rue is an
emmenagogue Emmenagogues (also spelled ''emmenagogs'') are herbs which stimulate blood flow in the pelvic area and uterus; some stimulate menstruation. Women use emmenagogues to stimulate menstrual flow when menstruation is absent for reasons other than pregna ...
and was cited by the Roman historian
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...
and
Soranus as an
abortifacient
An abortifacient ("that which will cause a miscarriage" from Latin: ''abortus'' "miscarriage" and '' faciens'' "making") is a substance that induces abortion. This is a nonspecific term which may refer to any number of substances or medications, ...
(inducing abortion).
Culinary use
![Ruta_in_Coffee_in_Ethiopia](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Ruta_in_Coffee_in_Ethiopia.jpg)
Rue has a culinary use, but since it is bitter and gastric discomfort may be experienced by some individuals, it is used sparingly. Although used more extensively in former times, it is not a herb that is typically found in modern cuisine. It is a component of
berbere
Berbere ( Oromo: ''Barbaree'', am, በርበሬ ''bärbäre'', ti, በርበረ ''bärbärä'') is a spice mixture whose constituent elements usually include chili peppers, coriander, garlic, ginger, Ethiopian holy basil (besobela) seeds, ''kora ...
, the characteristic Ethiopian-Eritrean spice mixture, and as such is encountered in their cuisine. Also in
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
, fresh rue is dipped in coffee before drinking it. Due to small amounts of toxins it contains, it must be used in small amounts, and should be avoided by pregnant women or women who have liver issues.
It has a variety of other culinary uses:
* It was used extensively in ancient Near Eastern and Roman cuisine (according to
Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq
( ar, أبو محمد المظفر بن نصر ابن سيار الوراق) was an Arab author from Baghdad. He was the compiler of a tenth-century cookbook, the ( ar, links=no, كتاب الطبيخ, ''The Book of Dishes''). This is the earlie ...
and
Apicius
''Apicius'', also known as ''De re culinaria'' or ''De re coquinaria'' (''On the Subject of Cooking'') is a collection of Roman cookery recipes. It is thought to have been compiled in the fifth century AD. Its language is in many ways closer ...
).
* Rue is used as a traditional flavouring in Greece and other Mediterranean countries.
[
* In ]Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...
(a region spanning Croatia and Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
), and in Northern Italy, it is used to give a special flavour to grappa
Grappa is an alcoholic beverage: a fragrant, grape-based pomace brandy of Italian origin that contains 35 to 60 percent alcohol by volume (70 to 120 US proof).
Grappa is made by distilling the skins, pulp, seeds, and stems (i.e., the poma ...
/ raki and most of the time a little branch of the plant can be found in the bottle. This is called ''grappa alla ruta''.
* Seeds can be used for porridge.
* The bitter leaf can be added to eggs, cheese, fish, or mixed with damson plums and wine to produce a meat sauce.
* In Italy in Friuli Venezia-Giulia, the young branches of the plant are dipped in a batter, deep-fried in oil, and consumed with salt or sugar. They are also used on their own to aromatise a specific type of omelette.
* Used in Old World
The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...
beer
Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...
s as flavouring
A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gustat ...
ingredient
An ingredient is a substance that forms part of a mixture (in a general sense). For example, in cooking, recipes specify which ingredients are used to prepare a specific dish. Many commercial product (business), products contain secret ingredie ...
.
Other
Rue is also grown as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...
, both as a low hedge and so the leaves can be used in nosegay
A nosegay, posy, or tussie-mussie is a small flower bouquet, typically given as a gift. They have existed in some form since at least medieval times, when they were carried or worn around the head or bodice. Doilies are traditionally used to bin ...
s.
Most cats dislike the smell of it, and it can, therefore, be used as a deterrent to them (see also '' Plectranthus caninus'').
Caterpillars of some subspecies of the butterfly '' Papilio machaon'' feed on rue, as well as other plants. The caterpillars of '' Papilio xuthus'' also feed readily on it.
Hasidic Jews also were taught that rue should be placed into amulets to protect them from epidemics and plagues. Other Hasidim
Ḥasīd ( he, חסיד, "pious", "saintly", "godly man"; plural "Hasidim") is a Jewish honorific, frequently used as a term of exceptional respect in the Talmudic and early medieval periods. It denotes a person who is scrupulous in his observ ...
rely on the works of a famous Baghdadi Kabbalist Yaakov Chaim Sofer
Yaakov Chaim Sofer (1870–1939) (Hebrew: יעקב חיים סופר) was a Sephardi rabbi, Kabbalist, Talmudist and ''posek''. He is the author of ''Kaf Hachaim'', a work of halakha that he came to be known by.
Biography
Sofer was born in Bagh ...
who makes mention of the plant "ruda" () as an effective device against both black magic and the evil eye.
It finds many household uses around the world as well. It is traditionally used in Central Asia as an insect repellent and room deodorizer.
Toxicity
Rue is generally safe if consumed in small amounts as an herb to flavor food. Rue extracts are mutagenic and hepatotoxic
Hepatotoxicity (from ''hepatic toxicity'') implies chemical-driven liver damage. Drug-induced liver injury is a cause of acute and chronic liver disease caused specifically by medications and the most common reason for a drug to be withdrawn fro ...
. Large doses can cause violent gastric pain, vomiting, liver damage, and death. This is due to a variety of toxic compounds in the plant's sap. It is recommended to only use small amounts in food, and to not consume it excessively. It should be strictly avoided by pregnant women, as it can be an abortifacient
An abortifacient ("that which will cause a miscarriage" from Latin: ''abortus'' "miscarriage" and '' faciens'' "making") is a substance that induces abortion. This is a nonspecific term which may refer to any number of substances or medications, ...
and teratogen.
Exposure to common rue, or herbal preparations derived from it, can cause severe phytophotodermatitis, which results in burn-like blisters on the skin.
Chemistry
A series of furanoacridones and two acridone alkaloids ( arborinine and evoxanthine) have been isolated from ''R. graveolens''. It also contains coumarins and limonoids.
Cell cultures produce the coumarins umbelliferone
Umbelliferone, also known as 7-hydroxycoumarin, hydrangine, skimmetine, and ''beta''-umbelliferone, is a natural product of the coumarin family.
It absorbs ultraviolet light strongly at several wavelengths. There are some indications that this ch ...
, scopoletin, psoralen, xanthotoxin, isopimpinellin, rutamarin and rutacultin, and the alkaloids skimmianine, kokusaginine, 6-methoxydictamnine and edulinine.
The ethyl acetate extract of ''R. graveolens'' leaves yields two furanocoumarin
The furanocoumarins, or furocoumarins, are a class of organic chemical compounds produced by a variety of plants. Most of the plant species found to contain furanocoumarins belong to a handful of plant families. The families Apiaceae and Rutacea ...
s, one quinoline alkaloid and four quinolone
Quinolone may refer to:
* 2-Quinolone
* 4-Quinolone
* Quinolone antibiotic
A quinolone antibiotic is a member of a large group of broad-spectrum bacteriocidals that share a bicyclic core structure related to the substance 4-quinolone. They ...
alkaloids.
The chloroform extracts of the root, stem and leaf shows the isolation of the furanocoumarin chalepensin
Chalepensin is a chemical compound of the furanocoumarin class. Originally isolated in 1967 from fringed rue (''Ruta chalepensis''), from which it derives its name, it has also been found in other plants of the genus '' Ruta'' including common ...
.
The essential oil of ''R. graveolens'' contains two main constituents, undecan-2-one (46.8%) and nonan-2-one (18.8%).
Symbolism
The bitter taste of its leaves led to rue being associated with the (etymologically unrelated) verb ''rue
''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of '' Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Balkan Peninsula. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially for its bl ...
'' "to regret". Rue is well known for its symbolic meaning of regret and it has sometimes been called "herb-of-grace" in literary works. In mythology, the basilisk
In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk ( or ) is a legendary reptile reputed to be a serpent king, who causes death to those who look into its eyes. According to the ''Naturalis Historia'' of Pliny the Elder, the basilisk of Cyrene is ...
, whose breath could cause plants to wilt and stones to crack, had no effect on rue. Weasels
Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bodi ...
who were bitten by the basilisk would retreat and eat rue in order to recover and return to fight.
In the Bible
Rue is mentioned in the Bible, Luke 11:42: "But woe unto you, Pharisees! For ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs".
In Lithuania
Rue is considered a national herb of Lithuania and it is the most frequently referenced herb in Lithuanian folk songs, as an attribute of young girls, associated with virginity and maidenhood. It was common in traditional Lithuanian weddings for only virgins to wear a rue () at their wedding, a symbol to show their purity.
In Ukraine
Likewise, rue is prominent in Ukrainian folklore, songs and culture. In the Ukrainian folk song "Oi poli ruta, ruta" (O, rue, rue in the field), the girl regrets losing her virginity, reproaching the lover for "breaking the green hazel tree".[ (Ukrainian)] " Chervona Ruta" (Червона Рута—"Red Rue") is a song, written by Volodymyr Ivasyuk, a popular Ukrainian poet and composer. Pop singer Sofia Rotaru performed the song in 1971.
In Jewish culture
"''Una Matica de Ruda''" is a traditional Sephardic
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), ...
wedding song.
In English literature
It is one of the flowers distributed by the mad Ophelia in William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
's ''Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
'' (IV.5):
:"There's fennel
Fennel (''Foeniculum vulgare'') is a flowering plant species in the carrot family. It is a hardy, perennial herb with yellow flowers and feathery leaves. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean but has become widely naturalized ...
for you, and columbines
''Aquilegia'' (common names: granny's bonnet, columbine) is a genus of about 60–70 species of perennial plants that are found in meadows, woodlands, and at higher altitudes throughout the Northern Hemisphere, known for the spurred petals Pu ...
:
:there's rue for you; and here's some for me:
:we may call it herb-grace o' Sundays:
:O you must wear your rue with a difference..."
It was planted by the gardener in ''Richard II
Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died ...
'' to mark the spot where the Queen wept upon hearing news of Richard's capture (III.4.104–105):
:"Here did she fall a tear, here in this place
:I'll set a bank of rue, sour herb of grace."
It is also given by the rusticated Perdita to her disguised royal father-in-law on the occasion of a sheep-shearing (Winter's Tale
''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some criti ...
, IV.4):
:"For you there's rosemary and rue; these keep
:Seeming and savour all the winter long."
It is used by Michael in Milton's ''Paradise Lost
''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse (poetry), verse. A second edition fo ...
'' to give Adam clear sight (11.414):
:"Then purg'd with euphrasy and rue
:The visual nerve, for he had much to see."
Rue is used by Gulliver in ''Gulliver's Travels
''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...
'' (by Jonathan Swift) when he returns to England after living among the " Houyhnhnms". Gulliver can no longer stand the smell of the English Yahoos (people), so he stuffs rue or tobacco in his nose to block out the smell. "I was at last bold enough to walk the street in his (Don Pedro's) company, but kept my nose well with rue, or sometimes with tobacco".
See also
* '' Peganum harmala'', an unrelated plant also known as "Syrian rue"
References
External links
Rue (Ruta graveolens L.) page
from Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages
{{Taxonbar, from=Q25062
graveolens
Herbs
Medicinal plants
Abortifacients
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
Mutagens
Subshrubs
National symbols of Lithuania