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Glehnia littoralis

Common name:	Bei Sha Shen	Family:	Umbelliferae
Author:	F.Schmidt. ex Miq.	Botanical references:	58
Synonyms:	Phellopterus littoralis (Benth.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - Japan. N. America.
Habitat:	Sandy banks by the sea, all around Japan[58].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	American Silvertop [B,P], Corkwing [H], Hama-Bohu [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	littoralis = of the sea shore; littoral;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Apiales. Renamed to Apiaceae -- Carrot family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	China; Japan

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.3m. . It is in flower from June to July. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs). We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

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

Edible Uses

Condiment; Leaves; Root.

Leaves and stems[105, 116, 174, 177].
Young buds[174]. They are dug out from the sand[174].
Roots[105, 116, 177].
Used as a condiment, resembling tarragon and angelica[46].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Analgesic; Antibacterial; Antipyretic; Diaphoretic; Expectorant.

The root is analgesic, antibacterial, antipyretic, diaphoretic and expectorant[174, 176, 279]. It is used in Korea in the treatment of migraine headaches[279].

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

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain. However, judging by its native range, it is likely to succeed outdoors in many areas of the country. The plant is likely to require a light, well-drained soil in a sunny position[K].

Propagation

Seed - we have no information for this species, but suggest sowing the seed in a greenhouse in the early spring. If fresh seed can be obtained, then it would be a good idea to sow some of it immediately in a greenhouse in case, like several other species in this family, it has a short viability. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and plant them out in the early summer. Consider giving the plants some protection from the cold during their first winter.

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.
[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.
[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.

References for Phellopterus littoralis (a possible synonym).

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany 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.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

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

[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.

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

[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.

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
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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.