Poor man’s ginseng. Dang-shen in Traditional Chinese Medicine. In the journal, FEMS Microbiology Ecology, Lodi and colleagues (2023) write:
For thousands of years, the roots of this plant have been used as a food and medicine in Asian countries such as China, Japan, and Korea (He et al. 2014b, Zeng et al. 2022).
As a dietary supplement [food], the roots are used in wine, soup, tea, and porridge, especially during the winter. Codonopsis pilosula roots are used in chicken soup.
In recent studies, the compounds that have been isolated from C. pilosula roots have been found to possess several medicinal and therapeutic properties, such as immunomodulatory, anticancer, antioxidant, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory activities, and are also used as gastroprotective, prebiotic, hypoglycaemic, hepatoprotective, renoprotective, and neuroprotective elements (Zou et al. 2020, Baiet al. 2020, Tang et al. 2021).
We love Joe Hollis’ Herb Walks (Mountain Gardens, North Carolina). Enjoy a Herb Walk with Joe as he tells you more about Codonopsis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVxNFPmLG8w
How to Plant: Ease of Germination: Easy. Sow indoors 6 weeks before the last frost. Sow seeds 5mm (¼ inch) in soil, keep moist to germinate. Plant out when the danger of spring frost has passed. Or directly sow in spring in late May. Codonopsis does well in shady spots. It is a climbing vine, so it will need a trellis or some sort of vertical support.
How to Harvest & Use: The root is what you are interested in. Wait until Codonopsis is 2-3 years old before harvesting the root for medicinal purposes. If you want to eat the root as food, harvest it in the first year.
Location: Sun, Partial Sun
Life cycle: Perennial (Zone 4 and up)
Usable Parts: Roots (dried, fresh)
Uses: Dried = Tea, Tincture; Fresh = as Food, eg, Soup, Tea
Height: Climbing Vine
