Eucommia ulmoides Seeds | Hardy Rubber Tree
LATIN NAME: Eucommia ulmoides
COMMON NAME: Hardy Rubber Tree
Plant Profile
Known to gardeners as Hardy Rubber Tree, Eucommia ulmoides is a tree in the eucommia family (Eucommiaceae). Hardy rubber tree sends oval, pointed leaves along spreading branches, fine, rubbery threads showing where leaf tears, and the whole tree carries the fine, solid look of the old hills. It is a tree of open, sunny, deep, rich, well-drained ground. Bees and other pollinators visit the flowers freely through the season. The ratio of effort to reward here is about as good as gardening gets.
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.
The species features in the wider study of the eucommia family, and its traits make it a useful subject for work on germination biology, cultivation and ornamental selection. Breeders and collectors still work with it, so well-kept seed remains available.
Uses & Benefits
Gardeners value Hardy Rubber Tree for its ornamental character, and the plant also fits naturally into herb, vegetable and cutting gardens. Hardy rubber tree is a solid, useful tree of old hills and study collection. It is a solid, useful tree of open, sunny, deep, rich, well-drained garden. Eucommia seeds start well in a fine, sandy mix kept lightly moist. After the first season it asks for very little beyond a place that suits it.
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
Hardy Rubber Tree is one of those generous plants that come along well from seed. Fill a pot with a light seed compost, sow evenly on the surface, cover thinly and stand it somewhere warm, bright and evenly moist. Grow the youngsters on steadily in pots until well rooted, then move them to their final positions.
Our Take
Hardy Rubber Tree settles in quickly once it finds its footing. Once the young plants are away, there is little left to do but watch them grow.
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