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Summary
Bloom Color: Lavender. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late summer, Mid summer. Form: Rounded, Spreading or horizontal.
Physical Characteristics
Vitex negundo is a deciduous Shrub growing to 3 m (9ft) by 3 m (9ft) at a medium rate.
See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8. It is in flower from September to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects.
Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.
UK Hardiness Map
US Hardiness Map
Synonyms
Agnus-castus negundo. Vitex nogondo
Plant Habitats
Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Hedge;
Edible Uses
Edible Parts: Seed
Edible Uses: Condiment Tea
Seed - occasionally used as a condiment[177, 183], it is a pepper substitute. When washed to remove the bitterness it can be ground into a powder and used as a flour[179], though it is very much a famine food used only when all else fails[177]. A tea is made from the roots and leaves[177, 183].
References More on Edible Uses
Medicinal Uses
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Antibacterial Antitumor Astringent Dysentery Expectorant Febrifuge Malaria Sedative
Tonic Vermifuge
This species is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine, it is the second most important treatment for chronic bronchitis[218]. (The sub-species V. negundo cannabifolia (Sieb.&Zucc.)Hand-Mazz. is used.) The leaves are astringent, febrifuge, sedative, tonic and vermifuge[146, 147, 178, 218, 240]. They are useful in dispersing swellings of the joints from acute rheumatism, and of the testes from suppressed gonorrhoea[240]. The juice of the leaves is used for removing foetid discharges and worms from ulcers, whilst an oil prepared with the leaf juice is applied to sinuses and scrofulous sores[240].They are harvested in early summer and used fresh or dried[238]. A decoction of the stems is used in the treatment of burns and scalds[218]. The dried fruit is vermifuge[240]. The fruit is also used in the treatment of angina, colds, coughs, rheumatic difficulties etc[218]. The fresh berries are pounded to a pulp and used in the form of a tincture for the relief of paralysis, pains in the limbs, weakness etc[4]. The root is expectorant, febrifuge and tonic[240]. It is used in the treatment of colds and rheumatic ailments[218]. It is harvested in late summer and autumn, and dried for later use[238]. The plant is said to be a malarial preventative and is also used in the treatment of bacterial dysentery - extracts of the leaves have shown bactericidal and antitumor activity[218].
References More on Medicinal Uses
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Other Uses
Basketry Hedge Hedge Insecticide Repellent Soil stabilization
Young stems are used in basket making and for making wattles[51, 146, 158, 272]. The leaves are used to repel insects in grain stores[51, 146]. Extracts of the leaves have insecticidal activity[218]. The fresh leaves are burnt with grass as a fumigant against mosquitoes[238]. The plant is grown on slopes to counter land slides[272].
Special Uses
Hedge Hedge Scented Plants
References More on Other Uses
Cultivation details
Landscape Uses:Border, Container, Pollard, Standard, Specimen. An easily grown plant, it prefers a light well-drained loamy soil in a warm sunny position sheltered from cold drying winds[1, 200]. Succeeds in poor dry soils[238]. Plants tolerate temperatures down to about -10°c[200]. They are not very hardy in Britain, they succeed outdoors at Kew[K], but in general are best given the protection of a sunny wall outside the milder areas of the country[11]. Plants only flower freely after a warm summer, so they are best grown against a sunny wall even in areas where they are hardy[219]. The flowers are produced so late in the season that they are unlikely to produce viable seed in this country even if they flower properly[K]. The plants require abundant summer sunshine in order to ripen their wood fully, the well-ripened wood is more frost resistant[11, 166]. There are some named forms, selected for their ornamental value[219]. The leaves and stems are strongly aromatic[182]. The flowers have a most pronounced musk-like perfume[245]. Special Features:
Not North American native, Fragrant flowers, Attractive flowers or blooms.
References Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information
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Plant Propagation
Seed - sow March in a greenhouse. It does not need any pre-treatment[113]. Germination is usually free and quick. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 8cm with a heel, July/August in a frame. Good percentage[78]. Cuttings of mature wood of the current seasons growth, November in a cold frame[113].
Other Names
If available other names are mentioned here
Native Range
TEMPERATE ASIA: Afghanistan, China (Anhui Sheng, Zhejiang Sheng, Fujian Sheng, Henan Sheng, Hebei Sheng, Hunan Sheng, Hubei Sheng, Gansu Sheng, Jiangxi Sheng, Jiangsu Sheng, Guangdong Sheng, Guizhou Sheng, Shanxi Sheng, Shandong Sheng, Shaanxi Sheng, Sichuan Sheng, Yunnan Sheng, Nei Mongol Zizhiqu, Guangxi Zhuangzu Zizhiqu, Ningxia Huizi Zizhiqu, Xizang Zizhiqu, Hainan Sheng), Japan, Taiwan TROPICAL ASIA: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India (Assam, Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Tamil Nadu (incl. Rameswaram Island), Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Sikkim, Rajasthan), Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, India (Andaman and Nicobar Islands), Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Indonesia (Jawa, Lesser Sunda Islands, Sumatera), Malaysia (Melaka, Pulau Pinang, Sarawak, Selangor), Philippines (Bicol (Region V), Luzon) AFRICA: Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Madagascar
Weed Potential
Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section.
Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :
Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.
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