Lovage (Levisticum officinale) is a perennial plant of the parsley family, introduced into this country from Europe as a garden plant and now grown as a crop in certain localities in New England and the West. The root has long been supposed to have medicinal properties and is in some demand in the drug trade. The flowering tops yield a volatile oil, for which, however, there is little demand. The seeds are used for flavoring confectionery and the leaf stems are sometimes blanched, like celery, and eaten as a salad.

Lovage is propagated by division or from seeds. The seeds may be planted in the fall in drills 18 inches apart or sown in early spring in a hotbed, greenhouse, or well-prepared seed bed in a sheltered portion of the garden. They should be covered very lightly with sand or fine sifted soil, and in order to prevent the soil from drying out before the seeds germinate it is advisable to spread old burlap or sacking over the bed. The sacking may be sprinkled occasionally if the weather is dry and should be removed when the first seedlings break the soil. The plants should reach a size suitable for transplanting by the end of May, when they may be set at intervals of 8 inches in rows far enough apart for convenient cultivation. Lovage grows well in almost any deep, well-drained soil, such as will produce a fair crop of corn or potatoes, and is benefited by the liberal use of fertilizer, although heavy applications of manure tend to produce excessive top growth.

The roots may be dug in October of the second or third year after setting the plants. Numerous offsets will generally be found, and if these have good roots they may be used to renew the plantation without recourse to seed. Such shoots should at once be reset at the usual distances apart. The freshly dug roots should be well washed, cut into slices about one-half inch thick, and carefully dried. If necessary, artificial heat, not to exceed 125° F., may be used to hasten drying.

Returns from experimental areas indicate that a yield of about 1,000 pounds of dried root to the acre may be expected under good conditions every third year. The prices quoted for American lovage root in the wholesale drug markets range from 45 cents to $1 a pound, according to demand and quality. Producers, however, usually receive much less than the wholesale price.