Aralia chinensis
| Aralia chinensis | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 11' |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Early Fall |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Aralia chinensis (common name: chinese angelica tree)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 - 5 months of cold stratification. Germination usually takes place within 1 - 4 months at 20°c[1]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse for at least their first winter. Once the plants are 25cm or more tall, they can be planted out into their permanent positions, late spring or early summer being the best time to do this.
Root cuttings 8cm long, December in a cold frame[2][3]. Store the roots upside down in sand and pot up in March/April. High percentage[3].
Division of suckers in late winter[2]. Very easy, the suckers can be planted out direct into their permanent positions if required.
Cultivation: Prefers a good deep loam and a semi-shady position[4][2][5]. Requires a sheltered position[4]. Plants are hardier when grown in poorer soils[5].
The young growth in spring, even on mature plants, is frost-tender and so it is best to grow the plants in a position sheltered from the early morning sun[K].
This species is closely allied to A. elata[2].
A very ornamental plant[4][2].
Range: E. Asia - China
Habitat: Forests on rich well moistened soil[6].
Edibility: Young shoots - cooked[7][8][9][10]. Used as a vegetable[11]. Blanched and used in salads[12].
Although no records of edibility have been seen for the seed, it is said to contain 5.8 - 17.5% protein, 4.2 - 46.3% fat and 3.7 - 5.7% ash[13].
Medicinal: The stem and root are anodyne and carminative[14][13]. It is used as a warming painkilling herb in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis[15]. The root is also considered to be useful in the treatment of diabetes and dysmenorrhoea[13]. Some caution is advised since the bark is considered to be slightly poisonous[13].
The stembark is diuretic and sialagogue[13].
Pollinators: Bees
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Seed Ripens: Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The bark is considered to be slightly poisonous[13].
Also Known As: A. elata.
Links
References
- ↑ Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan, 1988.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Komarov, Vladimir. Flora of the USSR. Gantner Verlag, 1968.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Larkcom, Joy. Oriental Vegetables. John Murray, 1991.
- ↑ Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Oriental Herbs and Vegetables, Vol 39 No. 2. Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1986.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.
- ↑ Revolutionary Health Committee of Hunan Province. A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press.
- ↑ Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.