Jiao-gu-lan (Gynostemma pentaphyllum)

[Tomer Corymbosa]

Herbaceous perennial vine native to China and Japan. The dried leaves of this plant make a tasty, energy-filled tea that contains 4 times more ginseng-like saponins than asian or american ginseng. Seeds germinate in 3 to 6 weeks in warm soil. Plant prefers part shade, well-drained and nitrogen rich soil, and is hardy to 20 degrees F. Makes an excellent indoor plant.

http://www.canmedbotanics.nl/jiaogolan.html

did someone here use it before?

please let me know,if its good like its written on the article above i'll order seeds.

[gusto]

I've used the extract before, but I usually take several herbals daily, so I won't attempt to give an opinion on efficacy of this particular one.

A powdered extract with 80% actives can be ordered from BAC in the US. Might be worth a try to find out if it meets your expectations before investing the time to grow the plant.

[apothecary]

The plant is worth growing just for the taste of the tea if nothing else

[Tomer Corymbosa]

do u know how to germinate those seeds?

i really dont know how to treat them...

thanks

[apothecary]

Sorry, I just ordered a plant from Herbalistics.

[Auxin]

12 years later, lol...

I just started some up, I split the seeds into two groups. One group was soaked overnight in water, the other in 0.15% potassium nitrate. They were then germinated on wet filter paper in petri dishes.

The nitrate soaked seeds sprouted several days faster.

But really, if you dont already have a potassium nitrate stock solution dont bother, they sprout pretty easy anyway.

 

Just figured it wouldnt hurt to record that somewhere ;)

 

Does anyone know if the seeds currently being sold out of china on ebay are bitter or non-bitter?