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Erodium stephanianum

Common name:		Family:	Geraniaceae
Author:	Willd.	Botanical references:	74, 272
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - China, Japan, Mongolia, Siberia and the Himalayas.
Habitat:	Dry slopes, sandy river banks and as a weed of cultivation[74]. Open placs at elevations of 2500 - 4000 metres in Nepal[272].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	0	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	E. stephenianum[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Stephen's Stork's Bill [P], Stephen's Stork's-bill [B],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Geraniales. Geranium family

Physical Characteristics

Annual growing to 0.6m. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 0/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antirheumatic Antiseptic Astringent.

The aerial parts of the plant are antirheumatic, antiseptic and astringent[176]. They are used in the treatment of acute and chronic rheumatalgia, diarrhoea, dysentery and enteritis[176]. The plant has also shown antibacterial action against Staphylococcus aureus, streptococci, Pneumococci, Shigella flexneri etc[176]. A paste of the plant is applied externally in the treatment of gout[272].

Other Uses

Dye.

A green dye can be obtained from the whole plant. It does not require a mordant[168].

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in many parts of the country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Prefers a sunny well-drained position and a limy soil or at least one that is not acid[1].

Propagation

Seed - sow in situ as soon as the seed is ripe in the late summer. The seed can also be sown in situ in late spring[1]. It usually germinates readily[200].

Suppliers

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

Web References

[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 Erodium stephenianum (a possible synonym).

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for the family Geraniaceae.

To be included in 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

[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]).

[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.

[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.

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

[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.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Erodium+stephanianum
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Erodium+stephanianum

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