Cuscuta japonica
| Cuscuta japonica | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 3' |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Cuscuta japonica (common name: japanese dodder, formerly known as C. systyla) is a parasitic climbing plant that is devoid of leaves, roots, or chlorophyll rendering it fully dependent upon its host.[1]
The plant is best grown in Autumn by lodging its seeds among the stems of a host plant to allow the plant to penetrate the plant with its suckers in order to obtain nutriment.[1]
Plants are hardy to at least -15°c[1].
A climbing plant, supporting itself by twining around other plants[1].
Range: E. Asia - China, Japan, Korea.
Habitat: Parasitic on shrub branches[2] in lowland and low mountains all over Japan[3].
Edibility: Young growth, boiled and seasoned[4].
Medicinal: A sweet, pungent herb that acts mainly as a liver and kidney stimulant[1], the seed of Japanese dodder is aphrodisiac, demulcent, diaphoretic, enuresis, hepatic and tonic[2][5][6][7][1]. A decoction of the seed is used to treat a variety of complaints including diarrhoea, vaginal discharge, enuresis, backache, constipation and impotence[7].
The young shoots are used to treat sore eyes[7].
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Revolutionary Health Committee of Hunan Province. A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press.
- ↑ Ohwi, Jisaburo. Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution, 1965.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Yeung, Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, 1985.
- ↑ Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.