natural herbs
Lespedeza
Lespedeza bicolor
Herb: Lespedeza
Latin name: Lespedeza bicolor
Family: Leguminosae
Edible parts of Lespedeza:
Young leaves and stems - cooked. Flowers - cooked. Seed - cooked. Occasionally boiled and eaten with rice. The leaves are used as a tea substitute.Description of the plant:
Plant:
DeciduousShrub
Height:
3 m(9 3/4 foot)
Flowering:
August toSeptember
Habitat of the herb:
Grassy places and thickets in lowland all over Japan. Mountain slopes, forest margins, roadsides, thickets and forests at elevations of 150 - 1000 metres.Other uses of Lespedeza:
The seed oil is used as a lubricant. The branchletsare used for making baskets. Because this species tolerates arid soils, it is grown as a windbreak, and for sand stabilization, and soil conservation.Propagation of the herb:
Pre-soak the seed for 24 hours in warm water and then sow it in spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 7 - 10cm with a heel, July/August in individual pots in a frame. It can be difficult to get the cuttings through their first winter, it is best to plunge the pots in a bed of ashes in a sheltered border outdoors.Cultivation of Lespedeza:
Grassy places and thickets in lowland all over Japan. Mountain slopes, forest margins, roadsides, thickets and forests at elevations of 150 - 1000 metres.Medicinal use of the herb:
None knownKnown hazards of Lespedeza bicolor:
None knownPlant information taken from the Plants For A Future.