Fern Asparagus (Asparagus filicinus)
At a glance
- Lifecycle
- Perennial (hardy)
- Exposure
- Full sun
- Frost limit
- −12.2 °C
Cultivation
Easily grown in any good garden soil. Plants are hardy to between -10 and -15°c. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Propagation
Seed - pre-soak for 12 hours in warm water and then sow in spring or as soon as the seed is ripe in early autumn in a greenhouse. It usually germinates in 3 - 6 weeks at 25°c. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer[K]. Division in early spring as the plant comes into growth.
Edible uses
Young shoots - cooked.
Medicinal uses
The dried root is antipyretic, antitussive, diuretic, expectorant, stomachic, nervous stimulant and tonic.
Habitat
Loose humus rich soils in forests, 1700 - 2700 metres in the Himalayas.
Native range
E. Asia - China, India.