Cichorium intybus (Chicory)

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Cichorium intybus L.

Chicory

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Asterales	Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
Family	Asteraceae	The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers
Genus	Cichorium	The Latinized version of an Arabic name for one species of this genus from the Greek kichore, which usually carries a common name of chicory or endive
Species	intybus	Derived from Egyptian tybi, “January,” the month that this species was customarily eaten

About plant names...

Common chicory is native to Europe, but it was introduced to North America and Australia, where it has become widespread.

Identification: Plants are 24-48" (60-121 cm) high, with tough grooved stems. Stems branch sparsely, looking unruly and sometimes lying almost sideways. Broken branches ooze a milky sap. Flowers are about 1" (2.5 cm) wide, blue, violet, or sometimes white. Each petal tip has five serrations. The stigmas, small hairlike structures in the center, are curled at the top and dark blue. The leaves remind me of dandelion leaves.

Chicory (Chichorium intybus). A, portion of flowering branch; B, basal leaf (runcinate-pinnatifid); C, median longitudinal section through a head, showing the insertion of the flowers; D, individual flower; E, fruit (ripened ovary), showing the persistent pappus (calyx) of short scales. From a scan at the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine. Original source unknown.

Edibility: Roots, after being baked and ground, have long been used as a coffee additive or even substitute, for example, during the Great Depression in America. Chicory root contains inulin, a starchlike substance just sweet enough to serve as a sweetener in some applications. (Chicory root itself is very bitter, due to the presence of several bitter agents.) Long term use of chicory may be deleterious to night vision, but this has not been confirmed.

Online References:

Wildflowers, Ferns & Trees of Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah

Missouriplants.com

Wikipedia

Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Illinois Wildflowers

Bjørn Rørslett/NN's Nature Photography site (photographed in ultraviolet light)

The Virginia Tech Weed Identification Guide

Purdue University's Center for New Crops and Plants Products

Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses

SEINet—the Southwest Environmental Information Network

8/28/2007 · Valley of the Rogue State Park, Oregon
≈ 4½ × 3" (11 × 7.9 cm) ID is uncertain

7/19/2017 · West Virginia
≈ 5 × 4" (12 × 10 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 11 × 7" (27 × 18 cm)

8/14/2017 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Old Long Loop, Hollis, New Hampshire
≈ 4½ × 4" (11 × 11 cm)

7/8/2016 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, Massachusetts

7/21/2013 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 3 × 3" (8.3 × 7.5 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 5 × 3½" (12 × 9.2 cm)

Cichorium intybus L. var. foliosum Hegi

Cichorium intybus L. var. sativum (Bisch.) Janch.

Cichorium intybus description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 5 × 3½" (13 × 9.2 cm)

Nashoba Conservation Land on Mt. Lebanon Rd · 7/16/2009 · Mt. Lebanon St, Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 10 × 15" (24 × 37 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 4½ × 3½" (11 × 9.2 cm)

9/17/2012 · Blood Dragon Ravine, Jeff Smith Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 2½ × 3" (6.8 × 8.4 cm)

8/25/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 7 × 11" (18 × 27 cm) ID is uncertain

6/17/2010 · Mt. Lebanon St., Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 2½ × 2½" (7 × 6.6 cm)

6/24/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts ID is uncertain

8/25/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, East Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 4½ × 3" (11 × 7.9 cm) ID is uncertain

7/27/2016 · Michaux State Forest, Caledonia State Park, Fayetteville, Pennsylvania
≈ 4 × 3" (10 × 8.4 cm)

Nashoba Conservation Land on Mt. Lebanon Rd · 7/16/2009 · Mt. Lebanon St, Pepperell, Massachusetts
≈ 3 × 4½" (8.3 × 12 cm)

Range:

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