- Type
- Leafy Greens
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Season
- Spring
- Sowing
- From seed
Field thistle
Breea segeta
Flavonoids and fibre · a small thistle picked on field margins
Field thistle is a daisy-family perennial common on field margins, roadsides and waste ground. It resembles the larger thistle but stands much shorter, its leaves are not crumpled, and its spines are softer. The young shoots of spring are picked and blanched for a dressed namul; once the flower stalk rises the leaves coarsen and are no longer eaten. Its roots run sideways and keep pushing up new shoots, so once it takes a margin it is not easily cleared. The Donguibogam lists Sogye (small thistle) in its Herb section and records the Korean name as Jobanggasae. It gives a cool nature and no toxicity, and separates it from Daegye, the larger thistle: the two resemble each other, but the large one stands three or four feet with crumpled leaves while the small one stands about a foot with leaves that are not crumpled. It also records the alternative name Jagye (spiny thistle). The fine spines along the leaf margin catch at bare hands, so gloves are worth wearing.
Year-Round Calendar
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Where It Grows
- Wild population Common on field banks, paddy banks and roadsides throughout the country.
- Wild population It grows widely from the northeast to central China and is harvested for use as xiaoji, the small-thistle herb.
- Wild population It grows in open ground and along field edges from Honshu southward.
It is a wild plant of temperate East Asia rather than a cultivated crop, so the countries listed here were chosen by its native range. In fields it spreads by rhizome and is treated as a weed, and only the young shoots of one spring season are gathered as namul (a seasoned wild green), so no production figures exist at all.
- Optimum
- 15~25℃
- Range
- 5~32℃
- Hardiness
- Hardy
A perennial that comes up wherever the sun reaches bare soil — field banks, roadsides, ploughed-over vacant ground. Its rhizomes pass the winter underground and push up shoots in early spring. It is not particular about soil or water, and once established it withstands drought.
In Korea Nationwide
It comes up anywhere on field banks, paddy banks and roadsides. Finger-length young shoots are picked in April and May, and once the flower stalk rises the harvest is over for that year.
How to grow
- Light
- A sunny spot. It grows in part shade too, but the shoots come thin
- Soil and depth
- Undemanding. Field-margin soil or bagged potting mix both work
- Spacing
- 30cm between plants. The roots run, so fix the boundary with a pot or a barrier
- Watering
- Water when the surface dries. Once established it takes most droughts
- Feeding
- No feeding. Rich ground draws the shoots up soft and thins the flavour
- Harvest
- April and May. Cut the base with scissors while the shoot is about a finger long. Once flower stalks start up it coarsens and the season is over
What makes the difference. Blanch picked shoots in salted water, rinse cold and wring them dry. If bitterness remains, soak them half an hour in cold water
Why this one is harder. The running roots make it hard to clear once established. In a small plot start it in a large pot — or simply pick it from the field margin, which is easier to manage
Common problems
- Aphids You will see Colonies on the shoot tips, turning sticky What to do Wash them off with water. Do not spray shoots that are to be eaten
- Powdery mildew You will see White dust on the leaves at the end of the rainy season What to do Widen the spacing and thin the lower leaves for airflow. Remove affected leaves
- Running roots You will see New shoots keep appearing where nothing was planted What to do Plant in a large pot or bury a barrier 30cm deep. Cut through spreading roots with a spade and lift them
This page describes how a crop is grown and used. It does not claim health effects for any food, nor is it intended to prevent or treat disease. Component and study notes are references only and do not mean the same result occurs in people. Consult a medical professional about health concerns.
Health Benefits
The old record — sogye (小薊). The Donguibogam lists it in the Herb section as Sogye (small thistle) and records the Korean name as Jobanggasae. It gives a cool nature and no toxicity. It sets Daegye, the large thistle, and Sogye side by side: alike in form, but the large one stands three or four feet with crumpled leaves while the small one stands about a foot with leaves that are not crumpled. It also records the alternative name Jagye (spiny thistle). What an old medical text wrote differs from how it is judged today.
Flavonoids in daisy-family leaves. Analyses widely report the isolation of flavonoids from daisy-family leaves, and field thistle is handled within that group. These are compositional analyses and have no bearing on disease.
How the old text separated the two thistles. The original divides them on two points: height and whether the leaf is crumpled. Present-day botany likewise places them in separate genera, Cirsium and Breea. This concerns naming and distinction.
Nutrition
- Flavonoids (leaves and stems) — a compound group widely reported in daisy-family leaves
- Dietary fibre (young shoots and stalks) — the basis of the bite that survives blanching
- Beta-carotene (deep green leaves) — the carotenoid that colours the leaf
A green that wants blanching Even young shoots carry fine spines along the leaf margin, and chewed raw they leave the mouth rough. Blanched in salted water and rinsed cold, the spines soften and the bitterness eases. Throw the blanching water away.
A short picking window Once the flower stalk starts up, the veins toughen and stay tough after blanching. The window is April and May, while the shoot is about the length of a finger. Leave a plant that has passed it and wait for the next spring.
Compounds in daisy-family leaves Flavonoids are widely reported in daisy-family leaves, and deep green leaves carry beta-carotene. Field thistle is treated within that same group. This entry stays with the compositional record.
Handling the bitterness As with most daisy-family greens, some bitterness remains. Half an hour in cold water after blanching softens it, and doenjang or ground perilla seed carries the rest. Soak it too long, though, and the aroma goes with the bitterness.
Pairings
○ Dressed with doenjang — Blanch the shoots, wring them out and dress with doenjang and sesame oil. The salt of the paste softens the daisy-family bitterness. Keep the garlic light.
○ Stir-fried with ground perilla seed — Stir-fry the blanched shoots with a little liquid and finish with ground perilla seed. The oil fills out the coarse grain. The same method works when it goes into a soup. Perilla (Deulkkae)
○ Namul rice — Chop the blanched shoots, cook them on the rice and stir through a soy dressing. It holds its own among several spring greens. Trim the thick base first.
△ Daisy-family rosettes look alike — do not pick on a guess — In early spring, at the rosette stage, many daisy-family plants resemble one another, and some of them are not eaten as greens. Field thistle has a shallowly waved leaf margin with fine spines, white felt on the leaf underside, and a milky sap at a cut. The larger Korean thistle has deeply cut, crumpled leaves and far harder spines. If every point does not match, do not pick it.
△ Roadsides and field margins — herbicide and exhaust — The places field thistle grows thickest are exactly the sprayed margins and the traffic verges. If leaves are yellowed and twisted, or the surrounding plants have died back all at once, herbicide has been there — do not pick. Avoid paths where dogs are walked, and paddy banks.
△ Spines — Fine spines run along the leaf margins and the stem, and stripping them bare-handed scratches. Wear gloves and cut with scissors. Picking with a child, let the child handle only shoots that have already been cut.
Varieties
- Field thistle (Breea segeta) (seed) — The commonest on margins and waste ground. About a foot tall
- Keun-jobaengi (Breea setosa) (seed) — Taller than the above, with more pronounced spines on the leaf
- Korean thistle (daegye) (seed) — The large group the Donguibogam sets apart from sogye. Three or four feet tall with crumpled leaves
Source: Donguibogam, Herb Section 小薊 · Rural Development Administration (Nongsaro)