Season: Fall - Spring
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The flowers are complete, perfect with five narrow, triangular-pointed petals. Flowers are most often blue, although pink flowers are sometimes observed. White-flowered types are also cultivated. The blue flower is genetically dominant over the white flower.
The flowers arise along scorpioid cymes to form large floral displays with multiple flowers blooming simultaneously, suggesting that borage has a high degree of geitonogamy (intraplant pollination).
It has an indeterminate growth habit, which may lead to prolific spreading. In temperate climates such as in the UK, its flowering season is relatively long, from June to September. In milder climates, borage blooms continuously for most of the year.
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Mature Height
24 Inches |
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Mature Width
18 Inches |
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Light
Half Sun |
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Water
Moderate |
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Uses
Vegetable use of borage is common in Germany, in the Spanish regions of Aragón and Navarre, on the Greek island of Crete, and in the northern Italian region of Liguria.
Although often used in soups, one of the better known German borage recipes is the Frankfurt speciality grüne Soße ("green sauce").
In Liguria, Italy, borage (in Italian, borragine) is commonly used as a filling of the traditional pasta ravioli and pansoti.
It is used to flavour pickled gherkins in Poland and Russia.
The flowers produce copious nectar which is used by honeybees to make a light and delicate honey. In Aragonese cuisine, borage boiled and sautéed with garlic is served with potatoes. Beverage
Borage is traditionally used as a garnish in the Pimms Cup cocktail, but is nowadays often replaced by a long sliver of cucumber peel or by mint. It is also one of the key botanicals in Gilpin's Westmorland Extra Dry Gin.
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RECIPES
Cucumber Salad with Borage Flowers
Ingredients
* 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 tablespoon lime juice
* salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1 cucumber - halved, seeded, and sliced
* 6 borage leaves
* 12 fresh borage flowers
Directions
Combine olive oil, lime juice, salt, and pepper in a bowl and stir together. Add sliced cucumber, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Sprinkle with borage leaves and borage flowers just before serving, as the flowers wilt quickly.
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