Burdock refers to any of a group of perennial flowering plants thistles in the Genus Arctium, family Asteraceae.

Burdock grows wild throughout most of Europe and Asia, where it is noted primarily for its burrs that cling to clothing and hair.

The taproot of young burdock plants can be harvested and eaten as a root vegetable. While generally out of favor in modern European cuisine, it remains popular in Asia. Edible Burdock is called gobo (牛蒡) in Japanese. Plants are cultivated for the slender roots, which can grow up to 1 meter long and 2 cm across. Burdock root is very crispy and has a sweet, mild pungent flavor. Immature flower stalks may also be harvested in late spring, before flowers appear; the taste resembles artichoke, to which the burdock is related.

"Dandelion and Burdock" is a soft drink that has long been popular in the United Kingdom, and authentic recipes are sold by health food shops, but it is not clear whether the cheaper supermarket versions still contain either plant. Burdock is believed to be a galactagogue.

Burs of Woodland Burdock

Folk herbalists consider dried burdock to be a diuretic, diaphoretic, and a blood purifying agent.

The roots of burdock, among other plants, are eaten by the larva of the Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli).

A large number of species have been placed in genus Arctium at one time or another, but most of them are now classified in the related genus Cousinia. The precise limits between Arctium and Cousinia are hard to define. There is an exact correlation between their molecular phylogeny.

Species

• Arctium lappa : Greater Burdock, Gobo
• Arctium minus : Lesser Burdock, Burweed, Louse_bur, Button_bur
  • Arctium minus nemorosum : Woodland Burdock, Wood Burdock
• Arctium pubens : Common Burdock
• Arctium tomentosum : Downy Burdock, Woolly Burdock
• Arctium vulgare (= Arctium minus nemorosum)