Botanical Name: Dendranthema indicum
Family: Asteraceae
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asterales
Genus: Chrysanthemum
Species: C. indicum
Synonyms: Chrysanthemum indicum, Chrysanthemum boreale, Chrysanthemum indicum boreale, Dendranthema boreale
Common Names:Indian chrysanthemum, Nakai Chrysanthemum japonicum Thunb. Chrysanthemum lushanense Kitam. Chrysanthemum nankingense Hand.-Mazz.
Habitat:Dendranthema indicum is native to E. Asia – Nepal, Bhutan, Eastern and central China, Central and Southern Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Laos. It is Found wild in most habitats. Grasslands on mountain slopes, thickets, wet places by rivers, fields, roadsides, saline places by seashores, under shrubs; at elevations from 100 – 2,900 metres.
Description:
Chrysanthemum indicum is an erect, aromatic, perennial plant producing a clump of stems 25 – 100cm tall from procumbent rhizomes. It usually blooms from August to October. It must be grown outside under sunlight with moist soil. They normally have yellow or white flowers with yellow pollen. As Moul says, it is suitable for light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine. It is sometimes cultivated for medicinal use. Several varieties are sometimes recognized within Chrysanthemum indicum, one of which is Chrysanthemum indicum var. edule (Kitam.) Kitam. – this form is cultivated as a vegetable in China. The plant is also grown as an ornamental.
Cultivation:
Chrysanthemum indicum is a plant of the temperate zone but it can be grown successfully outside the area such as in tropical areas as it is often cultivated in Southeast Asia with moist soil (pH around 6.5) in sunny weather. It can handle temperatures down to ?10 °C (14 °F).
Propagation:
Seeds can be sowed between the range of August to October. It usually starts to grow in 10 to 18 days at 15 °C (59 °F).
Medicinal Uses:
The whole plant is antiphlogistic, blood tonic, depurative, febrifuge and vulnerary. It is used for dissipating heat, detoxifying, and dissipating blood stasis. It is used in China to treat eye ailments. In conjunction with black pepper it is used in the treatment of gonorrhoea.
The leaves are depurative. They are used in China in the treatment of migraine.
The flowers are antibacterial, aperient, bitter, hypotensive, stomachic and vasodilator. A decoction is used in the treatment of conditions such as photopsia, vertigo, fever, headache, ophthalmia, dacryolithiasis,
xerophthalmia, amblyopia and hypertension They have a rejuvenating effect when used over a long period of time.
The flowers are used externally, as a poultice and also as a wash, in the treatment of furuncle, scrofula, deep-rooted boils, inflammation of the throat, eyes and cervix, eczema, itchiness of the skin.
The flowers contain the glycoside chrysanthemin that yields glucose and cyanidin on hydrolysis, together with stachydrine and an essential oil.
The flowers have been shown to have an antibacterial action, inhibiting the growth of Staphylococcus, E. Coli, Streptococcus, C. Diphtheriae, Bacillus dysenteriae.
An essential oil obtained from the plant contains chrysanthenone, this is active on the brain centre affected by Parkinson’s disease.
Edible Uses:
*The flower heads are pickled in vinegar.
*Flowers themselves can be used in beverages (Geg Huay).
*Young leaves can be used to make an aromatic tea.
*The seed contains about 16% of a semi-drying oil, but it’s not viable yet.
Other Uses: Seeds are is very small and would be rather fiddly to use.
Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysanthemum_indicum
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysanthemum_indicum
https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Dendranthema+indicum
