medicinal herbs
Chinese Lespedeza
Lespedeza juncea

• Medicinal herbs
• Natural herbs
• Latin names
• Common names

Herb: Chinese Lespedeza

Latin name: Lespedeza juncea

Synonyms: Hedysarum juncea, Lespedeza hedysaroides

Family: Leguminosae

Medicinal use of Chinese Lespedeza:

The juice of the roots is used to treat diarrhoea and dysentery.

Description of the plant:

Habitat of the herb:

River banks in Manchuria. Open places at elevations of 1000 - 2000 metres in Nepal. Mountain slopes and thickets below 1500 metres in China.

Edible parts of Chinese Lespedeza:

Young leaves and shoots - cooked.

Other uses of the herb:

The twigs are used in making brooms.

Propagation of Chinese Lespedeza:

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 the herb:

River banks in Manchuria. Open places at elevations of 1000 - 2000 metres in Nepal. Mountain slopes and thickets below 1500 metres in China.

Known hazards of Lespedeza juncea:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.