Achyranthes bidentata - Achyranthe

Habitat

Exposition

Plein soleil ou mi-ombre

Humidité

Humidité moyenne.

Sol

Sol léger à moyen.

pH

Non calcaire

Rusticité

Zone 8

Habitat originel

Forest edges, the sides of streams and shrubberies[254]. Moist shady places at elevations of 1200 - 3000 metres in Nepal[272].

Origine géographique

E. Asia - China, Japan, India.

Dangers connus

• One report suggests that the root is poisonous [179].

Comestibilité

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

Usages médicinaux

• 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].

Autres usages

• 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].

Culture

• 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 .