Cleomaceae FAMILY

Cleome lutea

Edibility

2/5

Medicinal

1/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitAnnual

Growth—

Prefers a light fertile soil in a warm dry sunny position with plenty of room to spread^{[1, 2]}. A frost tender plant, it can be grown as a summer annual in Britain^[2].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow or only lightly cover the seed in spring in a greenhouse^[3]. The seed usually germinates in 5 - 14 days at 25°c^[3]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in late spring. Day time temperatures below 20°c depress germination but a night time fall to 20° is necessary^[3]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Cleome+lutea>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

[1]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
[2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[3]Growing from Seed. Volume 4. — Bird. R. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1990 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.
[4]Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. — Hitchcock. C. L. · University of Washington Press · 1955 · ISBN - ↩︎A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.
[5]Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. — Harrington. H. D. · University of New Mexico Press · 1967 · ISBN 0-8623-0343-9 ↩︎A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.
[6]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
[PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎