Cynanchum sibiricum
Cynanchum sibiricum
Safety & Hazards
There are some reports of toxins in this genus[1].
Cultivation Details
We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it should succeed outdoors in many parts of this country. It probably does not have any special cultivation requirements and will probably succeed in most soils in a sunny position[PFAF]. There is a lot of confusion over the correct name of this species. According to the Russian flora C. sibiricum. (L.)R.Br. is a synonym of Antitoxicum sibiricum. (L.)Pobed. a perennial that grows to 45cm on sandhills, in pine woods, steppe and rocky slopes from W. Siberia to China. The same flora mentions C. sibiricum. Willd, a perennial that is very closely related to C. acutum (q.v.) and grows on tugail soils by rivers and brooks, irrigation canals, alluvial and sand dunes[2]. We cannot be sure which of these species is meant in the reports of edibility.
Propagation
Seed - sow spring in the 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. Division in spring. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Cynanchum+sibiricum>
Pollinators
Insects
References
- [1]Famine Foods listed in the Chiu-Huang Pen-ts'ao. — Reid. B. E. · Southern Materials Centre; Taipei · 1977 · ISBN - ↩︎A translation of an ancient Chinese book on edible wild foods. Fascinating.
- [2]Flora of the USSR. — Komarov. V. L. · Israel Program for Scientific Translation · 1968 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org · ISBN - ↩︎An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [3]Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World. — Tanaka. T. & Nakao S. · Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo · 1976 · ISBN - ↩︎The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
- [4]Plants for Human Consumption. — Kunkel. G. · Koeltz Scientific Books · 1984 · ISBN 3874292169 ↩︎An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of Latin names with a brief list of edible parts.
- [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎