What are the other names for pokeweed? Common aliases at a glance

Flowers & Gardening Jan 1, 1970By Emily Carter 0 views

The other names of pokeweed, and what to call it. As a child, I often saw a plant with purplish-red berries around the front and back of houses, and girls would use it to dye their nails. This pretty plant has a rather literary name, pokeweed (Phytolacca acinosa). Come and get to know this plant with the editor.

Phytolaccaceae genus

Phytolaccaceae, genus Phytolacca, Latin scientific name Phytolacca acinosa Roxb

Other names of pokeweed

Zhangliu, large amaranth, mountain radish, jianzhongxiao, daoshuilian, jinqiniang, zhumaer, baimuji

Distribution of pokeweed

Pokeweed is widely distributed in the red soil hilly areas south of the Yangtze River, and is mainly produced in North China and Central China. Among the varieties currently distributed in our country, there are mainly Phytolacca acinosa and Phytolacca americana (drooping pokeweed).

Morphological characteristics of pokeweed

Pokeweed is a perennial herbaceous plant, and the whole plant surface is hairless. It has a conical fleshy root, rather thick, with the outer skin of the root appearing pale yellow or grayish brown and the inner part yellow-white; the stem of pokeweed is upright and cylindrical, with longitudinal grooves on the surface. The stem is green in the young parts and purplish-red in the old parts, and is much branched; the leaves are ovate, with a thin papery feel, the leaf tip is acuminate, the base is wedge-shaped and gradually narrowed, and the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves are scattered with tiny white spots, while the midvein on the lower surface of the leaf is raised. Pokeweed has a spike inflorescence, blooms in summer and autumn, and the flowers are white. It has eight separate carpels. The berry is purplish-black, oblate, and borne in clusters.

Growing environment of pokeweed

Pokeweed has very strong vitality and is distributed in plains, hills and mountains, and is commonly seen by roadsides and around the front and back of houses. Pokeweed likes warm and humid climatic conditions, and the suitable growing temperature is between 14~30°C; after autumn, the aboveground part of pokeweed withers after the leaves fall, while the underground fleshy root can withstand a low temperature of -15°C, and when it is warm the next year the fleshy root sprouts and drives the growth of the aboveground part; pokeweed is very adaptable to soil and has no special requirements for soil, and basically can grow in any soil.

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