东风菜 dong feng cai

Aster komarovii H. Léveillé; Biotia corymbosa (Aiton) Candolle var. discolor (Maximowicz) Regel; B. discolor Maximowicz; Doellingeria scabra (Thunberg) Nees.

Herbs, perennial, 70-150 cm tall; rhizome short, thickened. Stems erect, glabrous. Leaves reduced upward, abaxially pale green, flat, 3- or 5-veined, margin and both surfaces scabrous, abaxially less so, eglandular; basal leaves withered by anthesis, petiole 10-15 cm, blade ovate, 9-15 × 6-15 cm, base cordate, margin serrate, teeth mucronate, apex acute; middle cauline leaves shortly petiolate, petiole broadly winged; blade ovate to narrowly ovate, base truncate to rounded; upper cauline leaves broadly winged shortly petiolate to sessile, lanceolate. Capitula in corymbiform synflorescences, 1.8-2.4 cm in diam.; peduncles 6-30 mm, sparsely to moderately scabridulous, eglandular or stipitate glandular, bracts linear. Involucre campanulate, 5-6 mm in diam.; phyllaries 3-seriate, strongly unequal, green area narrow; outer phyllaries ca. 1.5 × 1-1.5 mm, abaxially glabrous, base of outer thickened, margin broadly scarious, sometimes purplish apically, ciliate, apex obtuse, sometimes acute. Ray florets 4-9, white, 6-10 mm, tube 3-3.5 mm, lamina abaxially glabrous, eglandular; disk florets 4.5-5 mm, limb abruptly enlarged, campanulate, ca. 3 mm, sparsely shortly hairy at tube-limb junction, lobes spreading, triangular, 1.5-2 mm. Achenes obovoid, sometimes slightly compressed, 3-4 mm, glabrous, 3-7-ribbed. Pappus of many sordid-white, barbellate bristles, 3.5-4.2 mm (slightly shorter than disk florets); outer bristles short (50% or less of inner length), slender; inner bristles length 80-90% of innermost bristles, tapering; innermost bristles longest, clavate. Fl. Jun-Oct, fr. Aug-Oct. 2n = 18.

Open slopes in valleys, grasslands, thickets, very common; below 2000 m. Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Zhejiang [Japan, Korea, Russia (Far East)].

This plant is used medicinally for treating bites from venomous snakes.