{"id":23739,"date":"2022-01-07T13:51:20","date_gmt":"2022-01-07T12:51:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.infoirpinia.it\/wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T16:35:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T14:35:10","slug":"wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.infoirpinia.it\/en\/wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present\/","title":{"rendered":"Wild herbs in Irpinia, past and present"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wild herbs are one of the many natural treasures that the Irpinia region offers. Their recognition, harvesting, and use represent a link to the past that is increasingly important not to forget. The search for and collection of <strong>wild<\/strong> and <strong>medicinal<\/strong> herbs is, in fact, a practice still in use today, bringing back memories, smells, and ancient traditions often passed down to us from our grandparents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_87_1 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Indice:<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.infoirpinia.it\/en\/wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present\/#Wild_herbs_what_they_are_where_and_how_to_collect_them\" >Wild herbs: what they are, where and how to collect them<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.infoirpinia.it\/en\/wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present\/#Uses_and_traditions_between_yesterday_and_today\" >Uses and traditions between yesterday and today<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.infoirpinia.it\/en\/wild-herbs-in-irpinia-past-and-present\/#The_routes_of_aromatic_herbs_and_wild_herbs_in_Irpinia\" >The routes of aromatic herbs and wild herbs in Irpinia<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Wild_herbs_what_they_are_where_and_how_to_collect_them\"><\/span>Wild herbs: what they are, where and how to collect them<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wild plants and herbs that can be used in cooking and are therefore edible are properly called <strong>alimurgic plants<\/strong> and have been collected since ancient times to provide for food needs in times of need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&nbsp;Even if It&#8217;s more difficult than in the past, due to urbanization. Nowadays, they can be found in abandoned fields, in woods at various altitudes, and along the banks and banks of streams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Obviously linked to the natural cycle of the seasons, the best times for gathering wild herbs are spring and autumn, when they are most lush thanks to abundant rainfall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to tradition, wild herbs should be harvested early in the morning, when the sun is not yet high and the morning dew moistens them, giving them greater vitality. However, it is important to harvest them without tearing out the roots so that the plant can grow back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Uses_and_traditions_between_yesterday_and_today\"><\/span>Uses and traditions between yesterday and today<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you ask older people or think back to our grandparents, it will be easy to recall scenes, anecdotes, or &#8220;miraculous home remedies&#8221; related to the many herbs that, equipped with a bag and a cutter, they went to collect partly out of necessity and partly simply because they were often delicious to use in the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the past, for example, a remedy for children&#8217;s stomach aches was to make a decoction with the roots of <strong>Couch grass<\/strong> and <strong>Nettle<\/strong> together with some cereals such as barley and oats. Among the <strong>home remedies<\/strong> used to lower fever and calm dry coughs, <strong>borage<\/strong> leaves and flowers were used, while <strong>dandelion<\/strong>, also called dandelion or commonly &#8220;piscialetto&#8221; in reference to its diuretic properties, was well-known for its use against heartburn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But it is certainly in the <strong>cooking<\/strong> that the use of wild herbs in Irpinia, today as in the past, reaches the highest and most satisfying levels, making many traditional recipes unique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Borage, also excellent in a simple salad, becomes pure poetry when combined with cardillo, chervil, and escarole to create the filling of the traditional &#8220;<strong>Pizza with &#8220;l&#8217;erba&#8221; (grass), a typical Easter dish of our area.\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Different recipes and variations are then made with the so-called <em>Scazzuoppoli<\/em> &#8220;<strong>Wild Chicory<\/strong>,&#8221; the <em>cime re Vitaglia<\/em>, the <strong>cime di Vitalba<\/strong>, or even <strong>Pulieio<\/strong>, a variety of wild mint that is particularly abundant in the Ufita Valley and which is used in the preparation of &#8220;<strong>cicatiell&nbsp; co lo pulieio<\/strong>,&#8221; another typical Irpinia dish par excellence.\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_routes_of_aromatic_herbs_and_wild_herbs_in_Irpinia\"><\/span>The routes of aromatic herbs and wild herbs in Irpinia<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/p><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Given their importance and widespread use in Irpinia gastronomy, there are an increasing number of agritourisms and <a href=\"http:\/\/agricoltura.regione.campania.it\/fattorie\/scheda-352.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Educational Farms<\/strong><\/a> that, in addition to using them in their own kitchens, organize workshops and educational courses to rediscover the wild, aromatic, and medicinal plants that grow naturally in the area and are also cultivated on the farms themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <strong>medicinal and aromatic herb courses<\/strong> organized in <strong>Irpinia<\/strong> are mostly aimed at to children, schools, and small groups of people accompanied by expert guides who guide them in recognizing the species and its uses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Knowing how to recognize wild herbs, where to harvest them, the right time for each species, and the most appropriate method is essential to ensuring you&#8217;re consuming a product that&#8217;s safe for your health while fully respecting the ecosystem and nature.<\/p>\n\r\n<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Spontaneous, wild, and medicinal herbs are among the many natural treasures that the Irpinia region has to offer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":23741,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[409],"tags":[],"location":[],"class_list":["post-23739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nature"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - 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