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Lardizabalaceae FAMILY

Decaisnea insignis

Decaisnea insignis

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Shrub
Growth—

Decaisnea insignis is not a very cold-hardy plant, being able to tolerate short periods with temperatures down to around -5 to -8°c when fully dormant. Prefers a rich moist loamy soil and a sunny position sheltered from cold winds[1, 2]. Succeeds in partial shade[3]. This species is not very hardy in Britain[4], it probably needs greenhouse protection in most parts of the country[1]. The flowers and young growth in spring are very frost-tender and can be damaged by late frosts[3]. The flowers are produced at the tips of the new upright growths in the spring[4, 5].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame[3], it then usually germinates freely in early spring[PFAF]. Sow stored seed in late winter in a greenhouse. This usually germinates well, within 1 - 3 months at 18°c[2]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on under protection for their first winter. Plant out in late spring after the last expected frosts. Cuttings. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Decaisnea+insignis>

Pollinators

Flies, Insects

References

  1. [1]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  2. [2]Focus on Plants. Volume 5. (formerly 'Growing from seed') — Bird. R. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1991 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Corydalis spp.
  3. [3]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  4. [4]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  5. [5]Climbers and Wall Shrubs. — Davis. B. · Viking. · 1990 · ISBN 0-670-82929-3 ↩︎Contains information on 2,000 species and cultivars, giving details of cultivation requirements. The text is terse but informative.
  6. [6]Plantae Wilsonae. Vol 1 - 3 — Wilson. E. H. · University Press; Cambridge. · 1911 - 1917 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Details of the palnts collected by the plant collector E. H. Wilson on his travels in China. Gives some habitats. Not for the casual reader. It can be downloaded from the internet.
  7. [7]A Manual of Indian Timbers. — Gamble. J. S. · Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh · 1972 · ISBN - ↩︎First written in the 19th century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.
  8. [8]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.
  9. [9]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.
  10. [10]Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. — Hedrick. U. P. · Dover Publications · 1972 · ISBN 0-486-20459-6 ↩︎Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
  11. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎