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Microcos

Microcos paniculata

Microcos
Photo: Dinesh Valke from Thane, India, CC BY-SA 2.0

Microcos paniculata is a shrub or small tree in the mallow family, native to wet tropical and subtropical Asia from northeast Pakistan to southern China and Malesia. It is grown mainly for its use in herbal teas and traditional medicine, and it needs warm, humid conditions with rich, well-drained soil.

Family
Malvaceae (Mallow family)
Grows as
Shrub
Light
Part shade, Bright indirect
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist during the growing season and let the top few centimetres dry out slightly between waterings.
Soil
Fertile, well-drained loam or a rich potting mix
Temperature
18–32 °C; protect below 10 °C
How easy
Moderate
Safety
Not known to be toxic
Native range
NE. Pakistan to S. China and Malesia
Climate
wet tropical

About

Microcos paniculata is a flowering shrub native to China and south-east Asia including India. It is also included in Indian Ayurveda. It is sometimes added to Chinese herbal tea, having a mildly sour taste. In traditional Chinese medicine the plant is believed to help the digestive system, and it is also used for other health problems including colds, hepatitis, diarrhea, heat stroke, and dyspepsia.

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Microcos paniculata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.

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