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Angelica archangelica

Garden Angelica · Norwegian Angelica · Angelica

Family ApiaceaeGenus Angelica

A tall plant with reddish stems and big rounded heads of yellow-green flowers, beside a pond
The whole plantKrzysztof DaszutaCC0
A color plate of a stout ribbed stem with a domed umbel and a sheathing leaf, the flower, the ovary and the ribbed seed drawn in section beside it
IllustrationFranz Eugen Köhler, Köhler's Medizinal-PflanzenPublic domain

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

The plant

Habit
Herb, Herbaceous PerennialExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Habit
perennialPlants of the World Online
Height
3-6 ft0.9-1.8 mExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Spread
2-4 ft0.6-1.2 mExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Flower
Gold/Yellow, Green, Pink, WhiteExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Blooms
SummerExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Native range
Albania, Baltic States, Belarus, Bulgaria, Central European Russia, Denmark and elsewhereGBIF Backbone Taxonomy
Hardiness zones
5-8Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox

Growing conditions

Sun
Full sun; Partial ShadeExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Soil
Clay, Loam (Silt), SandExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0), Neutral (6.0-8.0)Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Moisture
Moist, Occasionally WetExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Sources: Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox — NC State Extension; Plants of the World Online — Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Worth knowing

  • Grown as a vegetable and medicine from the 10th century, and popular in Scandinavia from the 12th. It flavors liqueurs such as Chartreuse and Bénédictine, and its stems are candied. Wikipedia: Angelica archangelica
  • It looks like several poisonous relatives, such as Conium and Heracleum, and should not be eaten unless it has been identified with absolute certainty. Wikipedia: Angelica archangelica

This source reports 5 treatments. All are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Low Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around March 18, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C Light: light

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 18 days to germinate.

98% germination in 10–18 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20Public domain
Show the original text
Angelica (Apiaceae). A. archangelica germ. 70L (98% in 10-18 d), 70 GA-3 (97% in 11-15 d), 70D (5%)-40(10%)-70D(33% in 4-15 d)-40(5%), 40-70D(18%)- 40(2%), and 46% in Nov.-Dec. and 31% in March-April in OT. The light requirement is simiiar to the two species reported in the 2nd Ed., and 70L is the best treatment. The seeds were all dead after 1 y of DS.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Low Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around March 21, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Gibberellic acid soak

  2. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 15 days to germinate.

97% germination in 11–15 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20Public domain
Show the original text
Angelica (Apiaceae). A. archangelica germ. 70L (98% in 10-18 d), 70 GA-3 (97% in 11-15 d), 70D (5%)-40(10%)-70D(33% in 4-15 d)-40(5%), 40-70D(18%)- 40(2%), and 46% in Nov.-Dec. and 31% in March-April in OT. The light requirement is simiiar to the two species reported in the 2nd Ed., and 70L is the best treatment. The seeds were all dead after 1 y of DS.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 3

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty High Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around September 23, 2027 for a May 3 last frost. Too late for spring 2027 — that needed starting on September 22, 2026.

  1. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

    5 germinated in this phase.

  2. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

    10 germinated in this phase.

  3. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

  4. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

    5 germinated in this phase.

Steps after step 3 run on after germination.

about 6 months from start to step 3. Germination happens during step 3, in 15 days.

33% germination in 4–15 days.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20Public domain
Show the original text
Angelica (Apiaceae). A. archangelica germ. 70L (98% in 10-18 d), 70 GA-3 (97% in 11-15 d), 70D (5%)-40(10%)-70D(33% in 4-15 d)-40(5%), 40-70D(18%)- 40(2%), and 46% in Nov.-Dec. and 31% in March-April in OT. The light requirement is simiiar to the two species reported in the 2nd Ed., and 70L is the best treatment. The seeds were all dead after 1 y of DS.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 4

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

  1. Sow outdoors and leave it

    Up in March-April.

No stated waiting before sowing.

31% germination.

This source doesn't state how long step 1 lasts.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20Public domain
Show the original text
Angelica (Apiaceae). A. archangelica germ. 70L (98% in 10-18 d), 70 GA-3 (97% in 11-15 d), 70D (5%)-40(10%)-70D(33% in 4-15 d)-40(5%), 40-70D(18%)- 40(2%), and 46% in Nov.-Dec. and 31% in March-April in OT. The light requirement is simiiar to the two species reported in the 2nd Ed., and 70L is the best treatment. The seeds were all dead after 1 y of DS.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 5

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1996

Difficulty High Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around December 15, 2026 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

  2. Warm moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 70°F 21°C Light: dark

  3. Cold moist stratification

    Duration: 90 daysTemperature: 40°F 4°C

    2 germinated in this phase.

Steps after step 2 run on after germination.

about 3 months from start to step 2. Germination happens during step 2; time not stated, 21 days assumed.

18% germination.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement — N. C. Deno, 1996 · 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20Public domain
Show the original text
Angelica (Apiaceae). A. archangelica germ. 70L (98% in 10-18 d), 70 GA-3 (97% in 11-15 d), 70D (5%)-40(10%)-70D(33% in 4-15 d)-40(5%), 40-70D(18%)- 40(2%), and 46% in Nov.-Dec. and 31% in March-April in OT. The light requirement is simiiar to the two species reported in the 2nd Ed., and 70L is the best treatment. The seeds were all dead after 1 y of DS.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 1st Supplement, 1st Supplement, Angelica p. 20. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

Germination trials

Readers’ own records of sowing this species, published after review. Share your trial · All trials

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