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Gentianaceae FAMILY Critically Endangered

Gentiana kurroo

Gentiana kurroo

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitPerennial
Growth—

Gentiana kurroo grows luxuriantly in the Himalayas on southern open exposed slopes of mid and higher mountain ridges. Such sites are characterized by low temperatures, high isolation, and heavy wind speed. The plants are surrounded by tall grasses and scrubs and prefers to be overshadowed by them[1]. A moderately cold-tolerant plant, when fully dormant it can withstand temperatures down to about -15°c[2]. Gentiana species generally grow best when there is ample moisture to the roots in the growing season, but they also require very good drainage[2]. Often being native to mountainous regions, they require a certain minimum of atmospheric humidity; a high light intensity; but also a site where temperatures are not too high in the growing season[3]. They are therefore more difficult to grow in areas with hot summers and in such a region they appreciate some protection from the strongest sunlight[2, 3]. Most species will grow well in the rock garden[2]. Plants are intolerant of root disturbance[2]. This species requires a stony soil with perfect drainage[3]. It is best given some protection from winter wet[3]. This plant has a reputation for not being hardy in Britain[3], though this is more likely to be connected to excess moisture than to low temperatures. Plants are intolerant of root disturbance[2].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a light position in a cold frame[2]. It can also be sown in late winter or early spring but the seed germinates best if given a period of cold stratification and quickly loses viability when stored, with older seed germinating slowly and erratically[2, 3]. It is advantageous to keep the seed at about 10°c for a few days after sowing, to enable the seed to imbibe moisture[3]. Following this with a period of at least 5 - 6 weeks with temperatures falling to between 0 and -5°c will usually produce reasonable germination[3]. It is best to use clay pots, since plastic ones do not drain so freely and the moister conditions encourage the growth of moss, which will prevent germination of the seed[3]. The seed should be surface-sown, or only covered with a very light dressing of compost. The seed requires dark for germination, so the pots should be covered with something like newspaper or be kept in the dark until germination begins[3]. Pot up the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow on in light shade in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. The seedlings grow on very slowly, taking 2 - 7 years to reach flowering size[3]. When the plants are of sufficient size, place them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer. Division in early spring[4]. Most members of this genus have either a single tap-root, or a compact root system united in a single root head, and are thus unsuitable for division[3]. Cuttings of basal shoots in late spring[5]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Gentiana+kurroo>

Pollinators

Bumblebees, butterFlies

References

  1. [1]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  2. [2]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.
  3. [3]Gentians. — Köhlein. F. · Christopher Helm. London. · 1991 · ISBN 0-88192-192-0 ↩︎A nice readable book, giving details of habitats and cultural needs for many of the members of this genus, with brief notes on other genera in the family.
  4. [4]Popular Hardy Perennials. — Sanders. T. W. · Collingridge · 1926 · ISBN - ↩︎A fairly wide range of perennial plants that can be grown in Britain and how to grow them.
  5. [5]Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. — Bown. D. · Dorling Kindersley, London. · 1995 · ISBN 0-7513-020-31 ↩︎A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
  6. [6]Ethnobotany of the Himalayas — Kunwar R.M., Sher H. & Bussmann R.W. (Eds) · Springer Nature; Switzerland · 2021 · https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57408-6 · ISBN 978-3-030-57407-9 ↩︎
  7. [7]Flowers of the Himalayas. — Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. · Oxford Universtiy Press · 1984 · ISBN - ↩︎A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses.
  8. [8]Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). — Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. · Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. · 1986 · ISBN - ↩︎Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
  9. [9]A cross-cultural analysis of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh (India) medicinal plant use — Gairola S. et al · 2014 · http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2014.06.029 ↩︎
  10. [10]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  11. [11]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  12. [12]A Modern Herbal. — Grieve. · Penguin · 1984 · ISBN 0-14-046-440-9 ↩︎Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
  13. [13]Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. — Chiej. R. · MacDonald · 1984 · ISBN 0-356-10541-5 ↩︎Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
  14. [14]Edible and Medicinal Plants. — Launert. E. · Hamlyn · 1981 · ISBN 0-600-37216-2 ↩︎Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.
  15. [15]Complete Guide to Herbs. — Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. · Rodale Press · 1979 · ISBN 0-87857-262-7 ↩︎A good herbal.
  16. [16]The Herb Book. — Lust. J. · Bantam books · 1983 · ISBN 0-553-23827-2 ↩︎Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.
  17. [17]The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism. — Mills. S. Y. ↩︎An excellent small herbal.
  18. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎