|
The "Choji-so" (Amsonia elliptica) belongs to Apocynaceae (the Dogbane family). It is a perennial herb that is distributed southward from southern Hokkaido to Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu in Japan, as well as the Korean Peninsula and China. This herb grows in the wet grasslands on stream banks, and can reach 40-80 cm in height. The leaves are lanceolate and alternate. The pale bluish purple flowers bloom in the terminal cymes from May to June. The Japanese name is derived from the tall, cup-shaped corolla with a narrow tubular part, which resembles the character for "丁" (ding) when viewed from the side. In Chinese, it is called "水甘草" (shui gan cao).
|