The Voynich Botanical Plants

Folio 35r, Radicchio (Cichorium intybus, Asteraceae), may resemble a romaine lettuce, but it is a member of the chicory family. The cultivated plant has red leaves with white veins, a shallow root system and blue, daisy-like flowers. Cultivation of the plant began in Italy in the fifteenth century and the deep-red variety of today was engineered in 1860. Radicchio has been eaten as a vegetable since ancient times. Pliny the Elder claimed it was useful as a blood purifier and an aid against insomnia.