Platycarya strobilacea
| Platycarya strobilacea | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 7 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 39' |
| Width: | 39' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Late Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Platycarya strobilacea
Propagation: The seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed requires a period of cold stratification[1]. 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. Consider giving the plants some protection from the cold for at least their first winter outdoors.
Layering[1].
Cultivation: Requires a deep moist humus-rich loam and a sunny sheltered position[1].
Trees are hardy to about -12°c in Britain[1], but they are not usually a success in our climate[2], preferring a warm dry continental climate[1]. A tree in Hampshire is growing and fruiting well[3]. A tree at Kew flowered heavily in the hot summer of 1989[K].
Range: E. Asia - China, Korea.
Habitat: Thickets and woods from sea level to 1300 metres[4]. Mixed forests on mountain slopes, sometimes on limestone, at elevations of 400 - 2,200 metres[5].
Edibility: Young leaves - cooked[6]. A famine food, only used when all else fails[7].
Usage: A black dye is obtained from the fruits. It is used for dyeing cloth[8][9][4].
A black dye is obtained from the bark. It is used for dyeing nets[8][9]. (It quite possibly contains tannin which will also help to preserve the nets[K].)
The root is very fragrant when it is burnt. It is used in baths[10].
The wood is a good fuel[10].
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Monoecious
Also Known As: Fortunaea chinensis. Petrophiloides strobilacea.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Wilson, Ernest and Charles Sargent. Plantae Wilsonianae.
- ↑ Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Read, Bernard. Famine Foods Listed in the Chiu Huang Pen Ts'ao. Taipei Southern Materials Centre, 1977.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.