Is qu ma cai (Chinese dandelion greens) and dandelion the same plant?
Qu ma cai is a wild vegetable, and many people also eat dandelion as a wild vegetable, so is qu ma cai dandelion?
1. Is qu ma cai dandelion?
Qu ma cai is not dandelion. It is a plant in the Asteraceae family, also called ju mai cai, qin ma cai, etc. Dandelion is also an Asteraceae plant, with other names such as huanghua diding, po po ding, hua hua lang, etc.
2. Basic introduction to qu ma cai
Qu ma cai is a perennial herbaceous plant, and the seeds can sprout at 3-5°C. The suitable temperature for germination is 20-27°C. The suitable temperature for growth and development is 10-25°C. It is drought-resistant, waterlogging-resistant and salt-alkali-resistant, but it grows well and has a crisp and tender quality under moist soil and sufficient water conditions.
During drought, the leaves have more fiber and poor quality. However, too much water can easily rot the roots and cause death. It has no strict requirements for soil and can also grow in coastal saline-alkali land, and can be planted in front of and behind houses and at the corners of fields. But it is best planted in fertile, loose loam with strong water and fertilizer retention.
Qu ma cai generally grows on roadsides and in fields, and has effects such as clearing heat and detoxifying, cooling blood and stopping bleeding.
3. Basic introduction to dandelion
Dandelion is also a perennial herbaceous plant, widely growing in hillside grasslands, roadsides, fields and river beaches in middle and low altitude areas.
Dandelion is a perennial root plant. Under wild conditions, biennial plants can bloom and set seeds. In early summer, the number of flowers and seeds increases with the number of growth years. Some individual plants have more than 20 flowers, and excellent varieties can have as many as more than 20 flowers per plant. After flowering, the seeds mature after 13-15 days.
Raw dandelion is rich in vitamin A, vitamin C and potassium, and also contains iron, calcium, vitamin B2, vitamin B1, magnesium, vitamin B6, folic acid and copper, etc.