Blue as the sky on a sailor's day,
Scurvy weed kept the sickness at bay.
Scurvy Weed
Commelina cyanea—a plant whose common name reads like a medical report and whose flowers look like tiny fragments of fallen sky. Scurvy weed is one of those rare botanicals that carries an entire chapter of Australian colonial history in its name. When European sailors and settlers arrived on the east coast of Australia—ravaged by months at sea without fresh produce, their gums bleeding, their joints aching, their teeth loosening—they found, growing in the moist shade of the bush, a small trailing herb with vivid blue flowers and leaves packed with the one thing they desperately needed: Vitamin C. They ate it. They recovered. And the plant has been called scurvy weed ever since.
At Trolley'd's Lake David botanical source site in the Kangaroo Valley, scurvy weed grows in the moist, sheltered areas around the lake—exactly where it's been growing since long before any European knew what a vitamin was. Aboriginal Australians ate it as a green vegetable, understanding its nutritional value through the deep empirical knowledge of tens of thousands of years of land management. On the other side of the world, the closely related Japanese species Commelina communis was being used for something entirely different—its blue flower petals extracted to create the dye that coloured kimonos, woodblock prints, and textile art. Same genus, same blue, two utterly different cultural relationships. That's the kind of story that makes foraging endlessly fascinating.
Common Names: Scurvy Weed, Native Wandering Jew, Spreading Dayflower, Creeping Christian, Forget-me-not
Botanical Family: Commelinaceae (Dayflower/Spiderwort family)—approximately 700 species worldwide in 50 genera, with 9 genera in Australia. Linnaeus named the genus Commelina in honour of Dutch botanists Jan Commelijn (1629–1692) and his nephew Caspar Commelijn (1667–1731). In a famous piece of botanical wit, Linnaeus used the two large, showy petals of the type species to represent the two accomplished brothers, while the third, smaller, inconspicuous petal represented a third brother who died young and achieved little in botany. The species name cyanea is Latin from Greek kyanos, meaning "blue."
Native Habitat: Native to moist forests and woodlands of eastern Australia, Lord Howe Island, and Norfolk Island. Found from the NSW south coast (Narooma) northwards into Queensland. Grows in wetter, shaded forest habitats, thriving in damp, semi-shaded positions. Also readily colonises gardens, lawns, footpaths, and disturbed areas. A trailing herbaceous perennial with fleshy stems that grow along the ground, rooting at nodes when they contact soil. Leaves are ovate to narrow-ovate, 2–7 cm long. The deep blue flowers (about 1.5 cm diameter) appear from spring to autumn, each consisting of three petals—two large and showy, one smaller. Pollinated by native bees including Nomia aurantifer, Amegilla pulchra, halictid and colletid bees, and syrphid flies. Wallabies and rabbits eat the vegetation. A food source for native marsupials including bandicoots, bettongs, and kangaroos.
Toxicity & Allergens: Not considered toxic. The leaves, terminal buds, and young shoots are entirely safe to eat, raw or cooked. Rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants. It should not be confused with the introduced invasive Tradescantia fluminensis (wandering Jew), which has white flowers (not blue), variegated leaves, and is mildly toxic. The native scurvy weed also lacks the hairy leaf sheaths of the introduced species.
Traditional Uses:
Eaten as a green vegetable by Aboriginal Australians—the terminal buds and young leaves are the most palatable parts, while the stems can be stringy. This represents traditional knowledge of seasonal harvesting and selective preparation—not all parts are equally good eating, and knowing which parts to target is itself a form of culinary expertise developed over millennia.
Used by early non-Indigenous European colonists to prevent and treat scurvy—the Vitamin C deficiency disease that killed more sailors than combat during the Age of Exploration. Historical accounts indicate that when settlers and sailors arrived on Australia's east coast, they consumed local Commelina species to ward off this devastating condition. Whether Captain Cook's specific crew consumed it is part of colonial oral tradition, but the plant's common name "scurvy weed" directly records this historical relationship between a plant and a disease.
In modern culinary applications, scurvy weed can be blanched, stir-fried, used in soups and salads, or prepared as a pot herb. The flavour is described as mild, sometimes similar to bitter lettuce. It has been successfully prepared in Japanese nibitashi style (vegetables simmered in dashi broth) and pairs well with hijiki seaweed and adzuki beans.
In Japan, the closely related Commelina communis (Asiatic dayflower, known as tsuyukusa) has a rich dual tradition: it is valued as sansai (foraged wild vegetable) and as a medicine effective against fluid retention, fever, tonsilitis, and diarrhoea. But perhaps more remarkably, Japanese textile artists historically extracted blue pigment (aigami or aobana) from the petals of Commelina communis to create the distinctive blue dyes used in kimono making and as guide lines for woodblock prints (ukiyo-e). This is the same genus growing at Lake David—the same vivid blue, the same botanical family, connected across the Pacific by chemistry and beauty.
Phytochemistry: Notable for its high *Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content, which directly accounts for its historical effectiveness against scurvy. Contains **flavonoids, ***anthocyanins (responsible for the vivid blue flower colour), and various antioxidant compounds. The anthocyanin pigments are of particular interest—like butterfly pea flower (Clitoria ternatea), anthocyanins are pH-sensitive and change colour in response to acidity, shifting from blue in alkaline conditions to purple and pink in acidic ones. This property has significant potential for colour-changing cocktail applications.
History: Commelina cyanea was one of the many species first described by Scottish botanist Robert Brown in his 1810 work Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen—the landmark publication documenting plants collected during Matthew Flinders' circumnavigation of Australia (1802–1805). The plant's role in Australian colonial survival history is significant—it was one of the local species that early settlers relied upon to treat scurvy when European food supplies were exhausted or unavailable. The Japanese cultural history of the related Commelina communis as a textile dye dates back centuries—the extracted pigment aigami was used to create the blue designs on traditional kimonos and as guide lines for woodblock print masters.
Powers & Magical Uses: No documented magical traditions specific to C. cyanea. However, the plant carries powerful symbolic resonances. The vivid blue flower—ephemeral, lasting only a day—connects to broader traditions of flowers as symbols of transience and beauty. The colonial survival narrative gives it a redemptive quality: a humble native weed that saved foreign bodies from their own nutritional ignorance. The Japanese textile connection links blue pigment, botanical chemistry, and artistic expression across centuries and oceans. At Trolley'd, scurvy weed's story is a reminder that the most valuable things in the landscape are often the most overlooked.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is scurvy weed and is it safe to eat?
Scurvy weed (Commelina cyanea) is a native Australian perennial herb that is entirely safe to eat. The leaves, terminal buds, and young shoots are edible raw or cooked, with a mild flavour sometimes compared to bitter lettuce. Rich in Vitamin C and antioxidants, it was eaten by Aboriginal Australians as a bush food and by early European colonists to prevent and treat scurvy. It should not be confused with the introduced invasive wandering Jew (Tradescantia fluminensis), which has white flowers and is mildly toxic.
Did colonial sailors really eat scurvy weed to survive?
Historical accounts confirm that early European settlers and sailors on Australia's east coast consumed local Commelina species to prevent and treat scurvy—a Vitamin C deficiency disease that was a major killer during the Age of Exploration. The plant's enduring common name "scurvy weed" directly records this historical use. The plant's effectiveness was due to its high Vitamin C content, which Aboriginal Australians had understood and utilised through their traditional bush food knowledge for millennia before European contact.
Can scurvy weed flowers change colour in cocktails?
The vivid blue colour of scurvy weed flowers comes from anthocyanin pigments, which are pH-sensitive. Like butterfly pea flower (Clitoria ternatea), anthocyanins shift colour in response to acidity—moving from blue in alkaline conditions to purple and pink in acidic environments (like citrus juice or tonic water). This property has significant potential for creating colour-changing cocktail effects, though further testing of Commelina cyanea specifically would be needed for bartending applications.
What is the Japanese connection to scurvy weed?
The closely related Japanese species Commelina communis (Asiatic dayflower) has a remarkable cultural history in Japan. Japanese textile artists extracted blue pigment (aigami) from the petals to dye kimonos and create guide lines for woodblock prints. It is also valued as sansai (foraged wild vegetable) and as traditional medicine for fluid retention, fever, and tonsilitis. The Australian scurvy weed belongs to the same genus and shares the same vivid blue chemistry.
Where can I try Trolley'd's foraged botanical cocktails?
Trolley'd serves foraged botanical cocktails from aviation-themed bars at corporate events, weddings, brand activations, and festivals across Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Our Shorts 330 aircraft fuselage bar, airline trolley bars, and cockpit DJ booth create immersive experiences with cocktails featuring locally foraged Australian botanicals from the Southern Highlands. Winner of Timeout Sydney's Best Activation 2025. Packages from $5,800. Visit trolleyd.com.au to request a custom quote.
Glossary:
*Vitamin C (Ascorbic acid) is an essential nutrient that humans cannot synthesise and must obtain from food. Deficiency causes scurvy—characterised by bleeding gums, joint pain, poor wound healing, and ultimately death. Citrus fruits are the most famous source, but many leafy greens and wild plants—including scurvy weed—are equally effective.
**Flavonoids are plant metabolites with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties found widely in fruits, vegetables, and herbs.
***Anthocyanins are water-soluble pigments responsible for the red, purple, and blue colours in many fruits, vegetables, and flowers. They are pH-sensitive—appearing red in acidic conditions, purple at neutral pH, and blue in alkaline conditions. This property is exploited in "colour-changing" cocktails using butterfly pea flower and similar plants.
Acknowledgments:
1. Wikipedia, 'Commelina cyanea', accessed September 2025.
2. Brown R, 1810, Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.
3. Diego Bonetto, 2022, 'Scurvy weed: How to identify it and use it to create new recipes', diegobonetto.com.
4. Australian Native Plants Society, 2022, Commelina cyanea profile.
5. Deeply Regional Japan, 2020, 'True blue: a story of an unassuming Australian native plant, Japanese art, kimono and bushtucker'.
6. Jane Grows Garden Rooms, 2021, 'Garden Friends and Foes: identifying Commelina species'.
7. Heidi Merika, Wildcraft: The Science and Spirit of Wild Plants as Food and Medicine, 2019.
Botanical source site: Lake David, Kangaroo Valley NSW. Published March 2026. Trolley'd is an Australian experiential hospitality company founded by Byron Woolfrey, deploying premium aviation assets with foraged botanical cocktails across Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Winner of Timeout Sydney's Best Activation 2025.
