Fischer monkshood
Aconitum fischeri
Family: Ranunculaceae
What it is like
Aconitum fischeri is a PERENNIAL. The flowers are pollinated by Bees. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 0
Where it is found
Riverside forests on alluvium, often in large groups, clearings, occasionally in birch and alder forests and very rarely on herb covered slopes in Kamtschatka.
E. Asia - Northern Japan, Eastern Russia.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 0
Medicine
Rating: 1
The dried root is alterative, anaesthetic, antiarthritic, deobstruent, diaphoretic, diuretic, sedative, stimulant. It should be harvested in the autumn as soon as the plant has died down. This is a very poisonous plant and should only be used with extreme caution and under the supervision of a qualified practitioner.
Alterative: Causes a gradual beneficial change in the body, usually through improved nutrition and elimination, without having any marked specific action.
Anaesthetic: Numbs the feeling in a local or general area of the body.
Antiarthritic: Treats arthritis.
Deobstruent: Clears obstructions from the natural ducts of the body.
Diaphoretic: Induces perspiration.
Diuretic: Acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine.
Sedative: Gently calms, reducing nervousness, distress and irritation.
Stimulant: Excites or quickens activity of the physiological processes. Faster acting than a tonic but differing from a narcotic in that it does not give a false sense of well-being.
Other
Rating:
How it is grown
Thrives in most soils and in the light shade of trees. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a moist soil in sun or semi-shade. Prefers a calcareous soil. Grows well in open woodlands. Members of this genus seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits and deer. A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby species, especially legumes. Cultivated in China as a medicinal plant, it has been said to have been rendered much less toxic through this cultivation.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. The seed can be stratified and sown in spring but will then be slow to germinate. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer. Division - best done in spring but it can also be done in autumn. Another report says that division is best carried out in the autumn or late winter because the plants come into growth very early in the year.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Dappled Shade;
Habit: Perennial
Hardiness: 0-0
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
The whole plant is highly toxic - simple skin contact has caused numbness in some people.