Pinellia ternata
| Pinellia ternata | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 1' |
| Width: | 0.5' |
| Blooms: | Mid Summer-Late Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Pinellia ternata (common name: ban xia)
Propagation: Seed - we have no information but suggest sowing the seed in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe if this is possible otherwise in early spring. 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.
Division of offsets as new growth begins in spring[1].
Bulbils from the leaf axils can be potted up in late summer and be planted out in late spring[1].
Cultivation: An easily grown when given a rich soil, it requires plenty of water in the growing season[2]. Succeeds in full sun or partial shade[3].
This species is cultivated as a medicinal plant in China[4].
Plants produce bulbils in their leaf axils and when growing in suitable conditions can become invasive[3][1]. The plants can be naturalized in woodland[2].
Range: E. Asia - China, Japan, Korea.
Habitat: Cultivated fields and roadsides all over Japan[5]. Shady and damp grass thickets on mountain sides and stream edges[6].
Edibility: Root[7]. The tuber is about 12mm in diameter[8]. No more details of edibility are given in these reports but caution is advised since the fresh root is toxic[1]. The toxins can be destroyed by thoroughly drying, or very well cooking the root[K].
Medicinal: The root of ban xia is antiemetic, antiphlogistic, expectorant, febrifuge, sialagogue and styptic. It also strengthens the spleen[6][9][10][4][11]. Modern research has shown that this remedy is very effective in controlling nausea and vomiting[1]. It is also an ingredient of a Chinese prescription for removing gallstones without surgery, a process that usually causes severe nausea[1]. The root is also used internally in the treatment of coughs with thin watery phlegm and gastritis[1]. The fresh root is extremely acrid and contains toxins, these are neutralized upon drying or by soaking in tea or vinegar[1]. The root is harvested in the summer and dried for later use, it should not be used fresh[9][1].
Extracts of the plant have been shown to have analgesic, antiemetic, anticancer and sedative activity[12].
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: The plant is toxic[6]. This report probably refers to the presence of calcium oxylate. This is toxic and if consumed makes the mouth and digestive tract feel as though hundreds of needles are being stuck into it. However, calcium oxylate is easily destr
Also Known As: P. tubifera.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Brickell, Christopher. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers. Dorling Kindersley Publishers, 1990.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.
- ↑ Ohwi, Jisaburo. Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution, 1965.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Revolutionary Health Committee of Hunan Province. A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Kariyone, Tatsuo. Atlas of Medicinal Plants.
- ↑ Yeung, Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, 1985.
- ↑ Medicinal Plants in the Republic of Korea. World Health Organisation, 1998.
- ↑ Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.