Polygonatum macranthum ("Onarukoyuri")

Japanese name: オオナルコユリ （大鳴子百合）
Scientific name: Polygonatum macranthum

[Overview]
A perennial up to 1 m tall, found in forests in the mountains.
The rhizome reaches up to 3 cm in diameter and is zigzag-shaped.
The stem is cylindrical, 60–140 cm long, without ridges, and the upper part arches.
The leaves are simple and alternate in two rows, lanceolate to oblong, 15–17.5 cm long, often with three conspicuous veins, and entire.
They have short petioles.
The flowers hang from the leaf axils; in the upper part of the stem they are solitary, and in the lower part 2–4 flowers are borne in corymbs.
The flowers are white with greenish tips, funnel-shaped bells 2.5–3.8 cm long.
The tips of the corolla lobes curve backward.
The fruit is a spherical berry 0.8–1.2 cm in diameter.

[Uses]
The rhizome is used medicinally.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by division.
Cut the rhizome apart at the base where it branches.
It is not particular about soil as long as the site is well drained and well ventilated.
It prefers a place with sun from autumn to spring and partial shade in midsummer.
It is easy to grow.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
If base fertilizer is applied, further fertilizing is not particularly necessary, but organic fertilizer in winter improves growth from spring and makes the clump thicker.
Because the underground stems spread sideways, a plant left in the ground for several years will shift position, so replant it at that point.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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