Epimedium Grandiflorum Morr. (Yin Yang Huo in Chinese Name ) as one of the famous Chinese medicinal herbs, was most used for strengthening YANG in ancient China.

 

Shape:  Perennial herbaceous, with height 30—50cm.  Rhizome is crawling, with hard texture and in deep brown color.  Leafstalk is tall & thin, along with straight stem.  The flower, white in common, is about 6—8cm in diameter.  Seed appears to be brown or black brown.  Florescence for Epimedium grandiflorum: June to July; Fruit period: August. 

Cultivation: 1.  Field choice and soil preparation:  Choose empty land under broadleaf trees or rows between fruit trees, remove bush roots and weeds, then turn up the soil deep to 30cm with smashing the earth.  Excavate several field ditches in 60cm width according to the area size. 2.  Breeding:  According to the position of the hidden sprout, cut the stem in disorder underground into pieces with 10—20cm long, so as to increase the pieces in monomer. 3. Field setting: Put the stem pieces crisscrossing along ditches in tow rows, step on tightly with covering a thin layer of soil. Irrigate the fields to infiltration, join the sections after water fully infiltrated.  Field setting should be done in autumn after gathering. 4. Field management:  Remove the weeds in time in spring next year after field setting when cultivating in rows of fruit trees, due to young seedling and wide row space.  No need to remove weeds and loosen the soil when cultivating under broadleaf trees due to shade with trees and less weeds.  Do not gather in the stem-leaf of the area part in the same year of field setting, just for growing healthy sprout over winter so as to promote breeding in speed to joint together. 

Harvest: Generally done in summer and autumn for aerial part. Clean the Epimedium grandiflorum after gathering, bind it in bundle, leave to dry in the sunshine. Store with sealed and moisture-proof. 

Distribution:  Epimedium grandiflorum most grows by broadleaf trees in balanced moisture, in shrubbery, and in shady hillside.  It’s in the best growing with fleshy humus soil, and distributing in large area.  It’s mainly distributed in China in North-east, Shanxi and Sichuan province.