Epimedium brevicornum seed

LATIN NAME: EPIMEDIUM BREVICORNUM

COMMON NAME: Short-horned Epimedium

The short-horned epimedium hearts the delicate, wiry stems with the heart-shaped, toothed leaves and the small, white and yellow flowers in the loose sprays through the spring, the whole plant carrying the graceful, woodland look of the barrenworts. The flowers open with the spurred petals, the leaves flush with the pink and the bronze in the new growth, and the plant spreads into the neat, leafy ground cover. The dried leaves have served the traditional remedies for the ages. It likes the part shade or the shade, and the cool, moist, leafy soil.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

In the berberis family, the epimediums keep a double record: the woodland charm for the garden and the medicinal leaves for the traditional pharmacy. The chemists have studied the flavonol glycosides in the leaves, the growers have worked out the cultivation of the leafy herb, and the botanists of the woodland flora keep the species in their surveys. The seed biology fills out the picture, and the spring flowers give the shade garden its graceful ground cover.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

In the shaded garden, the short-horned epimedium heals in the shade. The dried leaves have served the traditional tonics for the ages, the heart-leaved mats spread into the neat ground cover, and the spurred spring flowers draw the early bees. It grows happily in the cool, leafy bed and rewards the grower with the steady, useful leaf harvest. Modest, valuable and graceful.

The short-horned epimedium seeds germinate slowly in a fine, gritty mix kept cool and shaded. The seedlings are fine and slow at first, so give them the quiet, leafy corner and the patience. Prick them out into the cool, moist, leafy ground once they are big enough, and keep them out of the strong sun. The heart-shaped leaves spread into the neat ground cover, and the first spurred flowers come within the few years.

To grow the short-horned epimedium from seed, sow the small, black seeds sparingly into the cell tray of fine, gritty mix, keep the tray in the bright, shaded spot and mist gently. The seedlings appear within a few weeks, and they grow on steadily. Settle the young plants in the part shade and the cool, moist, leafy ground, and the spurred flowers will heart the shade each spring.

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• perennial herb

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\nThe use of roots: medicinal\n\n