Herb latin name: Smilax trinervula


Synonyms: Smilax biflora trinervula


Family: Smilacaceae (Greenbrier Family)



Edible parts of Smilax trinervula:

Young plants - cooked. Fruit - raw. The red berries are about 6mm in diameter.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Deciduous
Perennial

Height:
100 cm
(3 1/4 foot)

Flowering:
April
to May

Habitat of the herb:

Mountains, C. Japan. Forests and thickets at elevations of 400 - 1700 metres in Fujian, Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces.

Propagation of Smilax trinervula:

Seed - sow March in a warm greenhouse. This note probably refers to the tropical members of the genus, seeds of plants from cooler areas seem to require a period of cold stratification, some species taking 2 or more years to germinate. We sow the seed of temperate species in a cold frame as soon as we receive it, and would sow the seed as soon as it is ripe if we could obtain it then. When the seedlings eventually germinate, prick them out into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first year, though we normally grow them on in pots for 2 years. Plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer. Division in early spring as new growth begins. Larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found it best to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in a cold frame, planting them out once they are well established in the summer. Cuttings of half-ripe shoots, July in a frame.

Cultivation of the herb:

Mountains, C. Japan. Forests and thickets at elevations of 400 - 1700 metres in Fujian, Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces.

Medicinal use of Smilax trinervula:

None known

Known hazards of Smilax trinervula:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.