Hedysarum alpinum

Botanical Description

Hedysarum alpinum is a herbaceous perennial plant with numerous, erect stems growing from a thickened, elongate rootstock; it can grow 40 - 120cm tall[ 74 Title Flora of the USSR. Publication Author Komarov. V. L. Website http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org Publisher Israel Program for Scientific Translation Year 1968 ISBN - Description 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. , 266 Title Flora of China Publication Author Website http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ Publisher Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. Year 1994 ISBN Description An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available. ]. The plant spreads by means of rhizomes. Mature plants may have roots with multiple branches that are several feet long and 'as thick as a carrot'[ 1050 Title Fire Effects Information System Publication Author Website http://www.feis-crs.org/feis/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description An on-line information site with comprehensive information on over 1,100 species of plant. Mainly developed to supply information on the effects of fire on plants and animals, it also contains a wealth of other information on the plants ]. The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food. The roots were an important food source for the native Alaskans and are still utilized by modern-day tribes[ 1438 Title Food Plants in the Americas: A Survey of the Domesticated, Cultivated, and Wild Plants Used for Human Food in North, Publication Author Kermath B.M.; Bennett B.C.' Pulsipher L.M. Publisher Year 2014 ISBN Description A pre-publication draft of an amazing, on-going work first started in 1985. It contains information on more than 3,900 taxa from the Americas - from Arctic regions to the Tropics ]. This is one of several Hedysarum species that have a long history of medicinal use in Chinese traditional medicine. It is harvested from the wild and traded in local markets. The plant is used in soil rehabilitation projects. The plant is the main source of the pharmaceutical drug 'alpizarin', an antiviral agent used in the treatment of herpes and other conditions[ 1489 Title Rational use of Hedysarum L., growing in Samara Oblast Publication News of the Samara Scientific Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Vol. 14, № 1 (9), 2012 Author Popova I.A.; Plaksina T.I.; Kurkin V.A.; Ryzhov V.M.; Tarase Publisher Year 2012 ISBN Description ]. The species is widespread and while it is possibly declining in parts of its range, it is not thought that any global population decline is likely to meet (or be close to meeting) the threshold for Vulnerable. The plant is classified as 'Least Concern' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species(2013)[ 338 Title IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Publication Author Website http://www.iucnredlist.org/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat. ].