Asparagus filicinus
Asparagus filicinus | |
Light: | |
Moisture: | |
Hardiness: | 8 |
Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
Cross Pollinated | |
Height: | 2' |
Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
Native to: | |
Edible Rating: | |
Medicinal Rating: | |
Tea: | Yes |
Asparagus filicinus (common name: fern asparagus)
Propagation: Seed - pre-soak for 12 hours in warm water and then sow in spring or as soon as the seed is ripe in early autumn in a greenhouse. It usually germinates in 3 - 6 weeks at 25°c[1]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer[K].
Division in early spring as the plant comes into growth.
Cultivation: Easily grown in any good garden soil[2]. Prefers a rich sandy loam[3].
Plants are hardy to between -10 and -15°c[2].
Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Range: E. Asia - China, India.
Habitat: Loose humus rich soils in forests, 1700 - 2700 metres in the Himalayas[4]. Forests, thickets, shady and moist places along valleys; 1200 - 3000 metres in western China[5].
Edibility: Young shoots - cooked[6][7]. Used as a vegetable[8].
Medicinal: The dried root is antipyretic, antitussive, diuretic, expectorant, stomachic, nervous stimulant and tonic[9].
Pollinators: Bees
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Mid Summer-Late Summer
Flower Type: Dioecious
Links
References
- ↑ Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan, 1988.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Singh, Gurcharan and Premnath Kachroo. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, 1976.
- ↑ Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ Gupta, Basant. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press, 1945.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Manandhar, Narayan. Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press, 2002.
- ↑ Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.