Cichorium is a genus of plants in the tribe Cichorieae within the family Asteraceae.Linnaeus, Carl von. 1753. Species Plantarum 2: 813 The genus includes two cultivated species commonly known as chicory or endive, plus several wild species.Altervista Flora Italiana, genere Cichorium includes photos and distribution maps for 4 species
Common chicory (Cichorium intybus) is a bushy perennial herb with blue or lavender (or, rarely, white or pink) flowers. It grows as a wild plant on roadsides in its native Europe, and in North America, where it has become naturalized. It is grown for its leaves, when it is known as leaf chicory, endive, radicchio, Belgian endive, French endive, or witloof. Other varieties are grown for their roots, which are used as a coffee substitute, similar to dandelion coffee.
True endive (Cichorium endivia) is a species grown and used as a salad green. It has a slightly bitter taste. Curly endive and the broad-leafed escarole are true endives.
Cichorium is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including setaceous Hebrew character, turnip moth, and the grass moth Diasemia reticularis.
Species Cichorium bottae Deflers – Saudi Arabia, Yemen Cichorium calvum Sch.Bip. ex Asch. – Ethiopia Cichorium endivia L. – Egypt, Israel Cichorium glandulosum Boiss. & A.Huet – Turkey Cichorium intybus L. – Europe Cichorium pumilum Jacq. – Mediterranean Cichorium spinosum L. – Mediterranean
Formerly includedFlann, C (ed) 2009+ Global Compositae Checklist are several species now considered better suited to other genera: Aposeris, Arnoseris, Geigeria, Rhagadiolus and Tolpis.
References
External links Chicory Pollinators Diagnostic photographs; insect pollinators of chicory Cichorium pumilum in Wildflowers of Israel