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Cryptotaenia japonica

Common name:	Mitsuba	Family:	Umbelliferae
Author:	Hassk.	Botanical references:	58, 275
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - China, Japan.
Habitat:	Woodland in hills and mountains[52, 58].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	4	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Japanese Honewort [P], Japanese Parsley [H], Mitsuba [H],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Apiales. Renamed to Apiaceae -- Carrot family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen perennial growing to 1m by 0.6m . It is hardy to zone 5. It is in leaf all year, in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 4/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge, Deep Shade.

Edible Uses

Condiment; Leaves; Root; Stem.

Leaves and stems - raw or cooked[2, 52, 116]. Used as a flavouring with a parsley-like flavour if you let your imagination run away with you[K]. Seedlings and young leaves can be used in salads[206]. When cooking, the leaves should not be cooked for more than a couple of minutes or the flavour is destroyed[206]. The leaves contain about 2.3% protein, 0.23% fat, 4.4% carbohydrate, 2.1% ash[179].
Root - raw or cooked[2, 52, 116, 183].
Blanched stem - a celery substitute[2, 116].
The seed is used as a seasoning.

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Febrifuge; Women's complaints.

Women's complaints. Used in the treatment of haemorrhages, colds, fevers etc[178].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Succeeds in most soils, preferring a moist shady position under trees where it often self-sows[52]. The leaves tend to turn yellow when plants are grown in full sun[206].
This species is not winter-hardy in all areas of Britain, though plants can tolerate short periods at temperatures down to -10°c[206].
Mitsuba is commonly cultivated as a vegetable in Japan, there are some named varieties[183]. It is usually grown as an annual[206]. It is closely allied to C. canadensis, and is considered to be no more than a synonym of that species by some botanists[200].
This plant is adored by slugs and snails and must be protected when small or when new growth is emerging in the spring[K].

Propagation

Seed - sow April in a greenhouse. Germination is usually rapid, prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out in early summer. The ideal temperature for sowing is about 25°c, though seed does germinate at higher and lower temperatures[206]. Seed can also be sown in early autumn[206].
Division in spring or autumn.

Cultivars

'': No entries have been made for this species as yet.

Suppliers

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

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

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

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

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

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[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.

[52] Larkcom. J. Salads all the Year Round. Hamlyn 1980
A good and comprehensive guide to temperate salad plants, with full organic details of cultivation.

[58] Ohwi. G. Flora of Japan. (English translation) Smithsonian Institution 1965
The standard work. Brilliant, but not for the casual reader.

[116] Brooklyn Botanic Garden Oriental Herbs and Vegetables, Vol 39 No. 2. Brooklyn Botanic Garden 1986
A small booklet packed with information.

[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.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[206] Larkcom J. Oriental Vegetables John Murray 1991 ISBN 0-7195-4781-4
Well written and very informative.

Readers Comments

Cryptotaenia japonica

Chris Brown (sienna@pond.net) Fri, 14 May 1999 13:44:48

I recently obtained a Cryptotaenia japonica plant from a local plant sale (Eugene, Oregon); the grower said it was an edible, so that made it a very appealing addition to my garden. As it was not in any of my horticultural reference books, I decided to do an internet search to see what kind of conditons it would flourish in. To my surprise, the North Carolina State University declared it a poisonous plant!

I then discovered your page, which confirmed my original information, which lists it as an edible plant. I don't know which source is correct, yours or the University's, but I don't think I will be eating it anytime soon!

Cross references: Web-pages: Why Perennials, Woodland Garden Plants.

Cryptotaenia japonica

Shani Sun Aug 26 21:55:18 2001

This is what the site has to say regarding edibility of this plant.

North Carolina State University website (link - http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/poison/Cryptja.htm )

Poisonous Part Leaves. Symptoms Severe skin irritation following repeated contact. Edibility EDIBLE PARTS: Cooked, starchy Oriental vegetable (root) or salad greens. Toxic Principle Unidentified. Severity TOXIC ONLY IF LARGE QUANTITIES EATEN.

Cross references: Web-pages: Why Perennials, Woodland Garden Plants.

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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.