Rubia argyi

(H. Lev. & Vaniot) Hara ex Lauener

Akane

RubiaceaeFruitLeaves

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What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit, Leaves

The fruit and leaves are eaten.

Where to Find It

It is a temperate plant. It grows in thickets and hedges. In China it grows between 300-3,400 m above sea level. In Sichuan.

Asia, China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Brunei, Bhutan, China, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mongolia, Maldives, Malaysia, Nepal, Oman, Philippines, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen

How to Identify

A climber or vine. It keeps growing from year to year. The stems are 2 m or more long and 4 angled. The leaves are mostly in rings of four. The leaves are broadly oval to heart shaped. They are 2-5 cm long by 2-4 cm wide. The flowers are in groups. The fruit are black.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Rubia argyi is a species of flowering plant of the family Rubiaceae. Its common names may include East Asian madder. It occurs in southern and eastern China, Taiwan, Japan, and Korea. Rubia argyi is a herbaceous, perennial vine. The stem can grow to a length of 2 m (6 ft 7 in) or more.

Production

In China plants flower July to October and fruit August to November.

Notes

There are about 60 Rubia species. It has anticancer properties.

Names & Synonyms

Galium argyi H Lev. & VaniotRubia akane NakaiRubia akane var. erecta Masam.Rubia chekinangensis DebRubia nankotaizana Masam.

References (4)

Kim, H. & Song, M., 2013, Ethnobotanical analysis for traditional knowledge of wild edible plants in North Jeolla Province (Korea). Genetic. Resour. Crop Evol. (2013) 60:1571-1585 (As Rubia akane)
Kintzios, S. E., 2006, Terrestrial Plant-Derived Anticancer Agents and Plant Species Used in Anticancer research. Critical Reviews in Plant Sciences. 25: pp 79-113 (As Rubia akane)
J. Jap. Bot. 13:781. 1937 (As Rubia akane)
Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/ (As Rubia akane)