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Eleutherococcus sessiliflorus

Common name:		Family:	Araliaceae
Author:	(Rupr.&Maxim.)S.Y.Hu.	Botanical references:	11, 151, 200
Synonyms:	Acanthopanax sessiliflorus ((Rupr.&Maxim.)Seem.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - China, Korea, Manchuria.
Habitat:	Moist woods, wooded riverbanks, forest edges and clearings[51, 174].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	3

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Panax sessiliflorus[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Korean Ginseng [H],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	florus = flowered; sessiliflorus = stalkless flower;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Apiales. Ginseng family

Physical Characteristics

A decidious shrub growing to 4.5m. It is hardy to zone 4. It is in flower from July to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 3/5 for medicinal use.

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

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Shady Edge.

Edible Uses

Drink; Leaves; Tea.

Young leaves - raw or cooked and used as a vegetable[105, 177, 183].
Old leaves are dried and used as a tea substitute[105, 177, 183].
A wine is made from the bark. It is highly fancied by the Chinese[183]. It is probably used mainly for medicinal purposes[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Adaptogen; Analgesic; Antiinflammatory; Antipyretic; Diuretic.

The root bark contains saponins, acanthosides, cardiac glycosides and polysaccharides[279]. It is adaptogenic, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic and diuretic[176, 218, 279]. It is used in Korea in the treatment of lumbago, neuralgia, arthritis and oedema[279].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Succeeds in an open loamy soil[1], preferring a well-drained humus-rich soil in full sun[200]. Tolerates poor soils and atmospheric pollution[200].
A very cold resistant plant[74] if it is sheltered from cold winds, tolerating temperatures down to at least -15°c[200].
A very ornamental plant[74], it spreads vigorously by means of suckers[200].
This species is closely related to E. divaricatus[200].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame[200]. It can be slow to germinate. Stored seed requires 6 months warm followed by 3 months cold stratification[113] and can be very slow to germinate[133]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse for at least the first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[113, 200].
Cuttings of ripe wood of the current season's growth, 15 - 30cm long in a cold frame[238].
Root cuttings in late winter[200].
Division of suckers in the dormant season[200].

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.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for Acanthopanax sessiliflorus (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database

References for acanthopanax sessiliflorus (a possible synonym).

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

References for the family Araliaceae.

[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

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

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[51] Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. Flowers of the Himalayas. Oxford Universtiy Press 1984
A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses.

[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.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[113] Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press 1987 ISBN 0942375009
A very detailed book on propagating trees. Not for the casual reader.

[133] Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 1. Thompson and Morgan. 1987
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation.

[151] Wilson. E. H. and Trollope. M. N. Corean Flora. Royal Asiatic Society 1918
A very small handbook, it does give a little bit of information on Korean plants.

[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.

[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.

[218] Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985 ISBN 0-917256-20-4
Details of over 1,200 medicinal plants of China and brief details of their uses. Often includes an analysis, or at least a list of constituents. Heavy going if you are not into the subject.

[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.

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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