Lespedeza bicolor
| Lespedeza bicolor | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 5 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 10' |
| Speed: | Moderate |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Nitrogen Fixer | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Lespedeza bicolor (common name: lespedeza)
Propagation: Pre-soak the seed for 24 hours in warm water and then sow it in spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 7 - 10cm with a heel, July/August in individual pots in a frame. It can be difficult to get the cuttings through their first winter, it is best to plunge the pots in a bed of ashes in a sheltered border outdoors[1].
Cultivation: Easily grown in a well-drained light loam in full sun[2][3]. Succeeds in light shade and in dry soils[4].
The top growth is not very cold tolerant, although the rootstock is hardy to about -25°c. Plants are usually cut back to the ground in all but very mild winters, though they generally resprout well from the base in the following spring and flower in late summer[3].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby[5].
Range: E. Asia - China, Japan, Korea, Manchuria.
Habitat: Grassy places and thickets in lowland all over Japan[6]. Mountain slopes, forest margins, roadsides, thickets and forests at elevations of 150 - 1000 metres[4].
Edibility: Young leaves and stems - cooked[7][8][9][10].
Seed - cooked[7][8][9]. Occasionally boiled and eaten with rice[10].
The leaves are used as a tea substitute[8][10][4]..
Usage: The seed oil is used as a lubricant[4].
The branchletsare used for making baskets[4].
Because this species tolerates arid soils, it is grown as a windbreak, and for sand stabilization, and soil conservation[4].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Mid Fall-Late Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Thomas, Graham. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray, 1992.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Ohwi, Jisaburo. Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution, 1965.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Read, Bernard. Famine Foods Listed in the Chiu Huang Pen Ts'ao. Taipei Southern Materials Centre, 1977.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.