Rue

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Rue

Rue (Ruta) is a genus of strongly scented evergreen

Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
subshrub

Subshrub

A subshrub is a horticultural rather than strictly botany category of woody perennial plant. It is distinguished from a shrub by its ground-hugging stems and lower height, with overwintering perennial woody growth typically less than 10–20 cm tall, or by being only weakly woody and/or persisting only for a few years....
s 20-60 cm tall, in the family Rutaceae

Rutaceae

Rutaceae, commonly known as the Rue or Citrus family, is a family of plants, usually placed in the order Sapindales.Species of the family generally have flowers that divide into four or five parts, usually with strong scents....
, native to the Mediterranean region, Macronesia and southwest Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
. Different authors accept between 8 and 40 species in the genus. The most well-known species is the Common Rue

Common Rue

The Common Rue , also known as Herb-of-grace, is a species of rue grown as a herb. It is native to southern Europe. It is sometimes grown as an ornamental plant in gardens, especially because of its bluish leaves, and also sometimes for its tolerance of hot and dry soil conditions....
.

The leaves

Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
are bipinnate or tripinnate, with a feathery appearance, and green to strongly glaucous blue-green in colour. The flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s are yellow, with 4-5 petal

Petal

A petal is one member or part of the Corolla of a flower. The corolla is the name for all of the petals of a flower; the inner perianth whorl, term used when this is not the same in appearance as the outermost whorl and is used to attract pollinators based on its advertising coloration....
s, about 1 cm diameter, and borne in cymes.

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Encyclopedia

Rue (Ruta) is a genus of strongly scented evergreen

Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
subshrub

Subshrub

Rutaceae

Asia

Common Rue

Leaf

Flower

Petal

Fruit

The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. In botany, which is the scientific study of plants, fruits are the ripened Ovary of flowering plants....
is a 4-5 lobed capsule, containing numerous seed

Seed

A seed is a small Plant embryogenesis plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some Food storage. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant....
s.

It was used extensively in Middle Eastern cuisine in olden days, as well as in many ancient Roman recipes (according to Apicius

Apicius

Apicius is the title of a collection of Roman cookery recipes, usually thought to have been compiled in the late 4th or early 5th century AD and written in a language that is in many ways closer to Vulgar Latin than to Classical Latin....
), but because it is very bitter, it is usually not suitable for most modern tastes. However, it is still used in certain parts of the world, particularly in northern Africa. In Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
rue leaves are sometimes added to grappa

Grappa

Grappa is a fragrant grape-based pomace brandy of between 37.5% and 60% alcohol by volume , of Italy origin. Literally "grape stalk", most grappa is made by distillation pomace and grape residue left over from winemaking after pressing....
to obtain grappa alla ruta.

Medicinal uses

According to The Oxford Book of Health Foods, extracts from rue have been used to treat eyestrain, sore eyes, and as an insect repellent. Rue has been used internally as an antispasmodic

Antispasmodic

An antispasmodic is a medication or an herb that suppresses spasms. These are usually caused by smooth muscle contraction, especially in tubular organs....
, as a treatment for menstrual problems, as an abortifacient

Abortifacient

An abortifacient is a substance that induces abortion. Abortifacients for animals that have mating undesirably are known as mismating shots.Common abortifacients used in performing medical abortions include mifepristone, which is typically used in conjunction with misoprostol in a two-step approach....
, and as a sedative.

Precautions

Caution should be taken with using rue topically. When applied to the skin with sun exposure, the oil and leaves can cause blistering. Rue oil can cause severe stomach pain, vomiting and convulsions and may be fatal. Some people are much more sensitive than others.

Literary references

Rue is mentioned in the Bible, Luke 11.42: "But woe unto you, Pharisees! For ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs".

It has also sometimes been called "herb-of-grace" in literary works. It is one of the flowers distributed by the mad Ophelia in William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English people poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's preeminent dramatist....
's Hamlet
Hamlet

Hamlet is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601. The play, set in Denmark, recounts how Prince Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle King Claudius, who has murdered King Hamlet, the King, and then taken the throne and married Gertrude ....
(IV.5):

"There's fennel

Fennel

Fennel is a plant species in the genus Foeniculum . It is a member of the family Apiaceae . It is a hardy, perennial plant, umbelliferous herb, with yellow flowers and feathery leaf....
for you, and columbines

Aquilegia

Aquilegia is a genus of about 60-70 species of columbines, herbaceous perennial plants that are found in meadows, woodlands, and at higher altitudes throughout the Northern Hemisphere....
:

there's rue for you; and here's some for me:

we may call it herb-grace o' Sundays:

O you must wear your rue with a difference..."

It was also planted by the gardener in Shakespeare's Richard II
Richard II (play)

'King Richard the Second' is a history play by William Shakespeare believed to be written in approximately 1595. It is based on the life of King Richard II of England and is the first part of a tetralogy, referred to by scholars as the Henriad, followed by three plays concerning Richard's successors: Henry IV, part 1, Henry IV, part...
to mark the spot where the Queen wept upon hearing news of Richard's capture (III.4.104-105):

"Here did she fall a tear, here in this place

I'll set a bank of rue, sour herb of grace."

In a song named Her Ghost in the Fog by the black metal

Black metal

Black metal is an extreme metal subgenre of Heavy metal music. It often employs fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, double-kick drumming, and unconventional song structure....
band, Cradle of Filth

Cradle of Filth

Cradle of Filth are an extreme metal band from Suffolk, England, formed in 1991. They have been embraced and disowned with equal fervour by various metal communities, and their particular subgenre has provoked a Cradle of Filth#Genre....
on their Midian

Midian (album)

Midian is the fourth studio album by Cradle of Filth, released on Halloween 2000. At the time it was considered their most commercial and accessible album to date....
album.

"An inquisitive glance, like the shadows, they cast

On my Love picking rue by the light of the Moon."

Rue is considered a national herb of Lithuania

Symbols of Lithuania

The symbols of Lithuania are used in Lithuania and abroad to represent the country and its people, history, culture, and nature. These symbols are seen in official capacities, such as flags, coats of arms, Postage stamp, and currency, and in Uniform Resource Locators....
and it is the most frequently referred herb in Lithuanian folk songs, as an attribute of young girls, associated with virginity and maidenhood.

In mythology

Mythology

The word mythology refers to a body of folklore/myths/legends that a particular culture believes to be true and that often use the supernatural to interpret natural events and to explain the nature of the universe and humanity....
, the basilisk

Basilisk

In European bestiary and legends, a basilisk is a legendary reptile reputed to be king of Serpent and said to have the power to cause death with a single glance....
, whose breath could cause plants to wilt and stones to crack, had no effect on rue. Weasels who were bitten by the basilisk would retreat and eat rue in order to recover and return to fight.

Songs associated with rue

Chervona Ruta

Chervona Ruta (song)

Chervona Rue is a popular Ukrainian song written by Volodymyr Ivasyuk in 1968 and performed by many singers. Its popularity reached its zenith with a version performed by Sofia Rotaru....
(??????? ????) Red Rue - A song, written by Volodymyr Ivasyuk

Volodymyr Ivasyuk

Volodymyr Mykhaylovych Ivasyuk --also Ivasiuk-- Ukrainian language: ?????????? ??????????? ???????; ) was a very popular Hutsul Ukrainian composer and poet from the Ukrainian SSR....
- a popular Ukrainian poet and composer.

Sofia Rotaru

Sofia Rotaru

Sofia Rotaru is a Russian, Ukraine, Moldovans and USSR Pop music singer-songwriter, musician, dancer, record producer, film producer, actress, business woman, and author....
, famous Pop-singer, sang the superhit Chervona Ruta

Chervona Ruta (song)

Chervona Rue is a popular Ukrainian song written by Volodymyr Ivasyuk in 1968 and performed by many singers. Its popularity reached its zenith with a version performed by Sofia Rotaru....
in 1971. After her performance, a number of musical bands, film (Chervona Ruta)

Chervona Ruta (film)

Chervona Ruta is a 1971 Soviet Ukraine musical film written by Miroslav Skochilyas and directed by Roman Oleksiv, starring Sofia Rotaru and Vasily Zinkevich alongside popular Soviet Ukrainian ensembles....
, organisations and companies were named on the territory of the former USSR. The name of the song comes from an old Ukrainian legend Chervona Ruta

Chervona Ruta

Chervona Ruta ? is a flower, but also part of the Ukrainian culture related to the holiday of Ivan Kupala Day. According to the legend, still respected in Carpathian mountains and Bukovina, rue is a yellow flower which turns red only for a couple of minutes on the night of Ivan Kupala....
. the song Chervona Ruta (literally "red rue") became part of Ukrainian and Russian pop culture recently with rap arrangements.

The progressive metal

Progressive metal

Progressive metal is a Fusion ; a mixture of progressive rock and Heavy metal music. Progressive metal blends the powerful, guitar-driven sound of metal with the complex compositional structures, odd time signatures, and intricate instrumental playing of progressive rock....
band Symphony X

Symphony X

Symphony X is an American progressive metal band founded in New Jersey in 1994 by guitarist Michael Romeo. Their 1997 album The Divine Wings of Tragedy and their 2000 release V-The New Mythology Suite have given the band considerable attention within the progressive metal community....
named a song "Absinthe and Rue" on their first album, Symphony X

Symphony X (album)

Symphony X is the first album by progressive metal band Symphony X. Many Symphony X fans consider this to be their least appreciated album, due to relatively poor production and the lack of Russell Allen, who, alongside Michael Romeo, would later define the Symphony X sound....
, and Kathleen Battle

Kathleen Battle

Kathleen Battle is an African-American soprano known for her agile and light voice and her silvery, pure tone. One of the most prominent recitalists and opera singers of her generation, she is admired for her wide ranging recital repertoire and performances of the operas of Handel and Mozart....
, American soprano, has recorded the song cycle "Honey and Rue" written by composer Andre Previn in collaboration with the Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison.

Many traditional English folk songs use rue to symbolise regret. Often it is paired with thyme: thyme used to symbolise virginity, and rue the regret supposed to follow its loss.

Rue

Medicinal uses

Precautions

Literary references

Songs associated with rue

See also