Native Plants

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Wednesday - September 10, 2008

From: Jacksonville, AL
Region: Southeast
Topic: Medicinal Plants
Title: Availability of ruda plants (Ruta graveolens) in Alabama
Answered by: Jimmy Mills

QUESTION:

I want to know is ruda plants available in alabama? If so where can I find it.

ANSWER:

We think the ruda plant you refer to is also known as Mexican Ruda or Common Rue (Ruta graveolens) and is a native of southern Europe that has been imported to North America as an ornamental plant and for its medicinal properties. Since it is not a native to North America, it falls outside of the area of emphasis of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

However, we have learned that it's distribution in nature includes the state of Alabama, but weren't able to determine its availability in nurseries in the state. There are numerous sites on the internet that sell dried plants for medicinal purposes, but the two links below are sources that sell live plants for growing.

http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/Ruta_graveolens.htm