What is the difference between asparagus fern and coral grass?
Asparagus fern is an upright herbaceous plant that can grow up to 1 m tall. It grows on grassy slopes or under forests at altitudes of 400-2300 m. Its rhizomes and roots are often used as a traditional Chinese medicine in Henan, where they are mixed with Cynanchum glaucescens. Coral grass, on the other hand, grows along the shores of pure, pollution-free sea areas and is a natural, eco-friendly terrestrial plant.
I. Introduction to Asparagus Fern
1. Distribution
It is distributed in Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Hebei, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu in China. It is also distributed in Japan, Korea and Siberia in Russia.
2. Morphology
The roots are slender, about 2-3 mm thick. The upper part of the stem and the branches have longitudinal ridges, and the branches sometimes have very narrow wings. The cladodes are usually in clusters of 3-4, narrowly linear, sickle-shaped, nearly sharply triangular at the base, flat above, 1-4 cm long and 0.7-1 mm wide; the scale-like leaves are nearly lanceolate, without spines at the base. The flowers are borne in axillary clusters of 2-4, yellow-green; the berries are about 6 mm in diameter, red when ripe, and usually contain 1-2 seeds. The flowering period is May-June, and the fruiting period is August-September.
3. Value
Its rhizomes and roots are often used as a traditional Chinese medicine in Henan, where they are mixed with Cynanchum glaucescens.
II. Introduction to Coral Grass
1. Distribution
Sea coasts. It grows in coastal saline wetlands. At high tide its body absorbs seawater, and at low tide it is exposed to the sun, and the sunlight evaporates the seawater in the leaves and stems, leaving concentrated marine nutrients in the leaves and stems.
2. Morphology
A perennial weak herb, 15-40 cm tall. The whole plant is more or less covered with white powder, hairless; the stems are slender, clustered, sparsely branched above the base, ascending, with longitudinal grooves. The flowering period is April, and the fruiting period is June.
3. Value
It can treat various acute inflammations, such as lobar pneumonia, acute mastitis, kidney-deficiency lumbago, etc., and has relatively significant effects on pneumonia, acute and chronic pharyngitis, acute tonsillitis, cold with fever, rhinitis, etc.