Interesting facts

The origin of the scientific name Borago is not quite clear. It may be derived from the Spanish or late Latin borra = rough-hairy. Borago would then have given rise to the Italian boragine and the French bourrache, from which the German Borretsch and the English Borage were then derived. In German the herb is also called Gurkenkraut = cucumber herb, a reference to its use in pickling cucumbers.
Borage was probably brought to Spain by the Arabs in the Middle Ages and then spread throughout the entire Mediterranean region. Originally a cultivated plant it is now regarded as a garden escape.
Because it is so rich in nectar Borage is considered one of the best plants for attracting bees. In fact it enters into a special kind of partnership with the bee. In the middle of its flower the filaments and anthers form a central cone in which the pollen collects. Only when the bee, searching for nectar, pushes its head between the filaments does the pollen fall out and can fertilise the flower. For ants Borage has another delicacy to offer. At the attachment point of the ripe seeds or nutlets they find a very fatty part for which they carry away the nuts: the ideal transport system for dispersal of the plant.
The herb, which has a pleasant taste of fresh cucumbers, can be added raw to salads or cooked to give a spinach-like vegetable. It is also the chief ingredient of the German dish Frankfurter Gruene Sosse (Frankfurt Green Sauce).
Some people see in the Borage flower, with its magical aura, the much sung blue flower of the German Romantics, the symbol of infinite romantic longing.