Meadow rue

Tall plants with blue-green, femlike foliage and loosely fluffy clusters of lavender or yellow flowers, meadow rues range from 1 to over 5 tall. Columbine meadow rue Thalictrum aquilegifolium) has leaves resembling columbine foliage other species leaves look like those of maidenhair ferns. 

Grow meadow rues in moist, well-drained, richly organic soil and partial shade. Tall flower stems need shelter from strong winds and may require staking. Water regularly to maintain soil moisture. Divide every 4-5 years to reduce crowding. 

Meadow rues have few insect pests. Fungal diseases such as powdery mildew may damage foliage and are best controlled with cultural practices. See Leaves covered with white powder on page 177 for controls. 

English name Small meadow-rae, lesser meadow-rue... 

The determination of aldehydes and ketones is of importance in the analysis of those essential oils characterised especially by aldehydic or ketoruc principles, e g.,the citral contained in lemon and lemongrass oils, citronellal in citronella Oil and some eucalyptus oils, benzaldehyde in bitter almond oil, salicylaldehyde in meadow-sweet oil, anisaldehyde in aniseed and fennel oils, cuminaldehyde m cumin oil, cinnamaldehyde in cinnamon oil, carvone in caraway oil, pulegone in pennyroyal oil and methyl nonyl ketone in rue oil The determination of the aldehydes and ketones presents, however, difficulties and the above methods are moderately exact in only a few cases, especially when the content of aldehydes or ketones is considerable The bisulphite method is applicable particularly to the determination of cinnamaldehyde and benzaldehyde in cinnamon oil and bitter almond oil, and, up to a certain pomt, to that of citral in lemongrass Oil. The sulphite method gives good results in the same cases and for the determination of carvone and pulegone... 

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