Ephedra americana andina
At a glance
- Lifecycle
- Perennial (hardy)
- Exposure
- Full sun
- Frost limit
- −23.3 °C
Cultivation
Requires a well-drained loamy soil and a sunny position. One report says that this species is frost-tender, but this is not our experience[K]. It succeeds outdoors at Cambridge Botanical Gardens and we have been growing it outdoors successfully since 1988[K]. Plants do not flower profusely or regularly in Britain. Our plants have been producing reasonable crops since 1991[K]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Propagation
Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a greenhouse. It can also be sown in spring in a greenhouse in a sandy compost[K]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on for at least their first winter in a greenhouse. Plant out in the spring or early summer after the last expected frosts and give some protection in their first winter[K]. Division in spring or autumn. Layering.
Edible uses
Fruit - raw.
Medicinal uses
The stems are depurative and diuretic. The stems of most members of this genus contain the alkaloid ephedrine and are valuable in the treatment of asthma and many other complaints of the respiratory system[K]. The whole plant can be used at much lower concentrations than the isolated constituents - unlike using the isolated ephedrine, using the whole plant rarely gives rise to side-effects.
Material uses
Plants can be used for ground cover, spaced about 60cm apart each way.
Habitat
Stony slopes and gravel terraces.
Native range
S. America - Andes from Ecuador to S. Chile and Argentina.