Cardamine leucantha

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Cardamine leucantha
Light:Full Sun Part Shade
Moisture:Mesic Hydric
Hardiness:5
Soil pH:5.6-8.4
Self Pollinated
Height:2'
Blooms:Mid Spring-Late Summer
Native to:
Edible Rating:PFAF Edibility RatingPFAF Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating:PFAF Medicinal RatingPFAF Medicinal Rating
Tea:Yes
Poisonous

Cardamine leucantha

Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a cold frame. Germination usually takes place within 1 - 3 weeks at 15°c[1]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in light shade in a greenhouse or cold frame for the first two years, planting them out when dormant in late summer.

Division in early spring or after the plant dies down in the summer. Larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Cultivation: We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in most parts of this country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.

Prefers a moist humus rich soil in shade or semi-shade[2] but succeeds in most soils that are not dry[3].

Range: E. Asia - China, Japan.

Habitat: Wet places by ponds and streams, in mountains all over Japan[4].

Edibility: Leaves - raw or cooked[5][6]. The seedlings are edible[7].

Dried plants are used as a tea substitute[7].

Medicinal: The rhizomes are used medicinally[7]. No further information is given.

Pollinators: Bees, flies, lepidoptera

Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.

Seed Ripens: Late Spring-Early Fall

Flower Type: Hermaphrodite

Also Known As: Dentaria leucantha.

Links

References

  1. Bird, Alfred. Focus on Plants Volume 5. Thompson and Morgan, 1991.
  2. Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
  3. Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
  4. Ohwi, Jisaburo. Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution, 1965.
  5. Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
  6. Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 Flora of China. 1994.