Eucommia ulmoides Seeds | Tea Leaves Tea
LATIN NAME: Eucommia ulmoides
COMMON NAME: Eucommia, Hardy Rubber Tree
Plant Profile
Among the ornamental and useful plants raised from seed, Eucommia (Eucommia ulmoides) stands out as a medium-sized, deciduous tree in the eucommia family, native to warm woodlands of the east Asia, while it has been used in traditions for its bark. Given room and time, it reaches roughly Fifteen metres. For the gardener, the sum of these traits is a plant that is easy to live with.
Science & Biotechnology
Du zhong is a botanical monotypic relic — the only species in its family — whose bark yields both rubbery gutta-percha and a pharmacopoeial drug. The Chinese Pharmacopoeia controls it through the lignan pinoresinol diglucoside, and the bark’s lignan and iridoid fractions lower blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats; in a controlled human trial, 1 g of standardised extract three times daily reduced blood pressure by about 7.5/3.9 mmHg versus placebo, with good tolerability. Its traditional kidney-tonic reputation for lower-back strength has partial support from bone-metabolism studies. The rubber threads in a snapped leaf still identify it at a glance.
Seed science, comparative botany and horticultural selection all touch on Eucommia ulmoides, a representative of the eucommia family with clear practical value. Eucommia has a real and distinguished place in research. For researchers, plants like this one offer practical material for propagation studies and selection work.
Uses & Benefits
Beyond its ornamental appeal, Eucommia has the practical versatility that makes a plant worth growing from seed year after year. Eucommia is a medium-sized, deciduous tree of warm woodlands, bearing glossy, dark-green leaves with silvery threads and flat, winged seeds. Its leaves are a food for caterpillars, and its spreading, rounded crown gives a fine shade in large garden and park, while its bark and its leaves are traditional materials in the East Asian medicine. To raise eucommia, sow seeds in pots of moist, open soil in a cool, bright place, keep them gently watered, and grow little trees on in the sun. Thereafter it wants only the ordinary attentions any garden plant receives.
Eucommia bark, Du Zhong, is a major Chinese tonic for lower back, knees and blood pressure support, unique for its gutta-percha latex strands; its lignans and iridoids are studied for vascular and bone effects, and the leaf makes a popular functional tea.
Growing from Seed
Eucommia grows readily from seed. Sow the seed evenly over the surface and cover lightly, using a loose, well-drained seed compost, and keep it just moist in bright light until the seedlings are well up. Pot the young plants on as they grow, harden them off gradually, and plant them into their final positions when sturdy.
Our Take
At around fifteen metres, it stays at a scale that suits modest gardens. Once established, Eucommia, Hardy Rubber Tree largely looks after itself. Established seedlings need little beyond ordinary attention.
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