Lovage

Growing Conditions

Growing Zones

Thrives in USDA Zones 3 - 9

Companion Planting

When to Plant

• Start Indoors

  8-10 weeks before last frost using fresh seed

• Transplant

  After last frost when soil has warmed to at least 50°F

• Direct Sow

  Direct sow fresh seed in late summer or fall for spring germination

• Harvest

  Harvest young leaves from spring through early summer; cut stems before flowering for best flavor; collect seed when umbels turn brown; dig roots in fall of the second or third year

Organic Growing Tips

• Top-dress around plants each spring with a generous layer of well-aged compost to feed the deep taproot and maintain moisture-retentive soil structure

• Apply a thick mulch of straw or wood chips around the crown to retain moisture through summer and suppress weeds that compete with the shallow feeder roots

• Water with diluted compost tea monthly during the growing season to encourage lush, flavorful foliage - ovage rewards fertility

• Cut flower stalks before they fully open if you want to extend leafy production; allowing seed set redirects the plant's energy away from foliage

• Divide established clumps every 4-5 years in early spring to maintain vigor; work generous worm castings into each division hole before replanting

• Lovage acts as a dynamic accumulator, drawing up minerals from deep in the subsoil; chop-and-drop surplus foliage as a mineral-rich mulch around neighboring plants

Common Pests

• aphids
• leaf miners
• celery fly
• slugs

Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Family

Carrot family (Apiaceae)

Genus

Levisticum

Species

Levisticum officinale

Natural History

Lovage is native to the mountainous regions of southwestern Asia and the eastern Mediterranean, likely originating in what is now Iran or Afghanistan, and has been cultivated in Europe since at least the early medieval period. Benedictine monks carried it northward through monastery gardens, and it appears in Charlemagne's famous capitulary of 812 CE listing plants to be grown on imperial estates. The name derives from the Old French ligisticum, referencing the Ligurian coast where it grew abundantly. As a deep-rooted perennial that re-emerges early and produces harvests for decades with minimal intervention, it was considered an essential kitchen garden staple before celery became widely available.

Traditional Use

Lovage was extensively documented in European herbal traditions from antiquity through the early modern period, with the roots, seeds, and leaves all noted in texts by Dioscorides, Hildegard of Bingen, and later Gerard and Culpeper. Ancient and medieval writers recorded it as a plant associated with digestion and the kidneys, often prescribing roots or seeds in decoction. Its officinale epithet reflects its formal status as a plant kept in apothecary stores.

• Classical Greek and Roman medicine, first century CE - root and seed

  Dioscorides described the root and seed of ligusticum as warming and recorded their use for complaints of the stomach and urine, a characterization repeated by Roman writers including Pliny the Elder

• Medieval European monastic medicine, 12th century CE - root

  Hildegard of Bingen recorded lovage root in her Physica as beneficial for gastric complaints and fevers, reflecting the plant's prominent place in Benedictine herbal practice

• English herbalism, Gerard's Herball, 1597 - leaves and seed

  John Gerard wrote that lovage leaves and seed were reputed to warm the stomach and clear the kidneys, describing it as a well-established kitchen herb with parallel medicinal regard

Lovage is generally regarded as safe in culinary quantities. The plant contains furanocoumarins that can cause photosensitivity reactions in sensitive individuals following substantial skin contact with the sap. Pregnant women historically avoided large non-culinary quantities; this traditional caution is reflected in older herbal texts.

This information is provided for historical and educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making decisions related to your health.

Morphology (Plant Structure & Identification)

• Root System

  Lovage produces a large, fleshy taproot that can extend 18 inches or more into the soil; this deep root is what powers the plant's rapid spring regrowth and makes it drought-resilient once established but also means it strongly resists transplanting after the first year.

• Stem

  Hollow, ribbed stems grow rapidly to 4-6 feet and are edible when young - hey can be used like celery stalks; as they mature and harden they become fibrous and are best left or cut back to redirect growth to fresh basal foliage.

• Leaves

  Large, glossy, dark green leaves are deeply divided and smell strongly of celery and yeast when crushed; yellowing lower leaves often indicate dry soil or nitrogen depletion, while pale new growth in spring is normal before the root system fully activates.

• Flowers

  Compound umbels of small yellow-green flowers appear in midsummer on tall flowering stalks and attract a wide range of beneficial insects including parasitic wasps and hoverflies; removing stalks before seed set extends leafy growth but allowing a few to set seed provides self-sown replacements.

• Fruit

  Ribbed, aromatic seeds ripen from green to tan-brown on the umbel and can be harvested by cutting whole seed heads into a paper bag; fresh seed sown immediately has significantly higher germination rates than stored seed and should be collected each season for propagation.

Known Varieties

Common cultivars worth knowing

• Levisticum officinale (species type)

  The standard species as cultivated in European gardens for centuries; no widely available named cultivars are commercially distinct, so most seed sold simply as 'Lovage' is the straight species

  Best for: All-purpose culinary and herb garden use

• Maggi Plant (common name form)

  A colloquial name for the standard species reflecting its flavor similarity to Maggi seasoning; plants sold under this name are the same species but the name helps growers understand its culinary intensity

  Best for: Kitchen gardens where the yeasty, umami flavor is the primary draw

• Scottish Lovage (Ligusticum scoticum)

  A related but distinct coastal species native to northern European shorelines, smaller and more compact than true lovage with a milder anise-celery flavor; sometimes grown as a curiosity or in coastal herb gardens

  Best for: Smaller gardens or growers seeking a milder flavor with a different wild-plant character