Herb: Korean Monk's Hood


Latin name: Aconitum koreanum


Synonyms: Aconitum komarovii


Family: Ranunculaceae (Buttercup Family)



Medicinal use of Korean Monk's Hood:

The root is used in Korea to treat chills in the legs and arms and articular pain. The root contains a number of highly toxic alkaloids that can be carditoxic, causing hypotension and arrhythmia, unless they are first allowed to degrade, usually by drying the plant. The root has been shown to be analgesic, cardiac tonic, uterine stimulant.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Perennial


Height:
150 cm
(5 feet)

Habitat of the herb:

Sparse shrub thickets, dry short grass meadows and on argillaceous and stony mountain slopes.

Edible parts of Korean Monk's Hood:

Young leaves - cooked. This report should be treated with great distrust due to the poisonous nature of the genus.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. The seed can be stratified and sown in spring but will then be slow to germinate. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer. Division - best done in spring but it can also be done in autumn. Another report says that division is best carried out in the autumn or late winter because the plants come into growth very early in the year.

Cultivation of Korean Monk's Hood:

Sparse shrub thickets, dry short grass meadows and on argillaceous and stony mountain slopes.

Known hazards of Aconitum koreanum:

The whole plant is highly toxic - simple skin contact has caused numbness in some people.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.