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Achyranthes bidentata

Common name:	Niu Xi	Family:	Amaranthaceae
Author:	Blume.	Botanical references:	74, 238
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	One report suggests that the root is poisonous[179].
Range:	E. Asia - China, Japan, India.
Habitat:	Forest edges, the sides of streams and shrubberies[254]. Moist shady places at elevations of 1200 - 3000 metres in Nepal[272].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	3

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Niu Hsi [E], Niu Hsi Chiu [E], Pig's Knee [P], Soei In Soei In Taloen [E], Too-Inokozuti [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	bidentata = with 2 teeth dentata = with teeth
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Caryophyllales. Amaranth family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	China Japan Java

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.75m by 0.4m . It is hardy to zone 8. It is in flower from August to September, and the seeds ripen from September to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Leaves Seed.

Seed - cooked. A good substitute for cereal grains in bread-making, they have often been used for this purpose in famine years[2, 177, 238].
Leaves - cooked[177, 178]. Used as a vegetable in the same manner as spinach[179].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Anodyne Antiasthmatic Antirheumatic Bitter Digestive Diuretic Emmenagogue Odontalgic Vasodilator.

The roots, leaves and stems are widely used in Chinese herbal medicine[238]. They are anodyne, antirheumatic, bitter, digestive, diuretic, emmenagogue and vasodilator. They act predominantly on the lower half of the body and are used in the treatment of aching back and knees and asthenia of the lower limbs[176, 238, 254]. Research suggests that they can cause dilation of the cervix and so this herb should not be used when pregnant[238].
The herb is taken internally to treat hypertension, back pains, urine in the blood, menstrual pain, bleeding etc[238].
The root juice is used in Nepal in the treatment of toothache[272]. This juice is also used in the treatment of indigestion and is considered to be a good treatment for asthma[272].
The stem of the plant is used as a toothbrush that is said to be good for the teeth and is also a treatment for pyorrhoea[272].
The plant can be used fresh or dried. The leaves and stems are harvested in the summer and are usually crushed for their juice or used in tinctures[238]. The roots are harvested from 1 or 2 year old plants in the autumn or winter and usually dried and ground into a powder or used in decoctions[238].

We have a more details factsheet on the history and medicinal use of this plant. Email webmaster@pfaf.org for details.

Other Uses

Insecticide Teeth.

Two insect-moulting hormones are found in the roots[174]. Can this have a practical application as an insecticide?
The stem of the plant is used as a toothbrush that is said to be good for the teeth and is also a treatment for pyorrhoea[272].

Cultivation details

Prefers a rich, sandy, slightly acid soil in partial shade[238].
This species is probably not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to at least -5° c[238].
When grown in a rich soil the roots can be up to 1.2 metres long[238].
Widely cultivated in China, especially in Henan Province, as a medicinal plant[238] and as a food plant[179].

Propagation

Seed - sow late spring in a greenhouse. Germination should be fairly rapid, prick out the seedlings into individual pots of fairly rich soil when they are large enough to handle. It is probably wise to grow this plant on in the greenhouse for its first winter, planting it out into its permanent position in late spring after the last expected frosts.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[PHARM] Phytochemical Data (common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for achyranthes bidentata (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Amaranthaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[174] Kariyone. T. Atlas of Medicinal Plants.
A good Japanese herbal.

[176] Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985
A very good Chinese herbal.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[178] Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre
A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.

[179] Reid. B. E. Famine Foods of the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. Taipei. Southern Materials Centre 1977
A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.