Eleocharis dulcis - Chinese Water Chestnut

Family:	Cyperaceae
Habit:	Perennial
Height:	1
Synonyms:	E. dulcis. Heliocharis tuberosa.
Range:	E. Asia - China, Japan, to Australia.

Eleocharis dulcis (Chinese Water Chestnut) is a Perennial which grows to a height of 1m . It has a hardness rating of 9and is quite resiliant to frost.
The flowers from this plant are hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and they are pollinated by

Soil Information

Chinese Water Chestnut will grow in light (sandy),medium (loamy),hard (clay) soil. It is not necessary for the soil to be well drained.
The soil prefers the following PH / acid levels :
- pH of less than 6, Acidic soils
- pH between 6 and 8, Neutral soils
- pH greater than 8, Basic soils
Chinese Water Chestnut prefers soils

Ideal Planting Locations

Chinese Water Chestnut should not be planted in shady areas.

Marshy land and shallow water[200]. The edges of seasonal swamps in Australia[193].

Planting places suited to this plant described below.

• Is a pond plant
• A bog garden plant

Cultivation Details

A plant of marshes and shallow water, it prefers slightly acid soil conditions and a sunny position[200]. Requires a rich fertile soil[206]. Plants are not very frost hardy, the tubers should be harvested at the end of the growing season and stored in a cool damp but frost-free position until the spring[206]. The water chestnut is widely cultivated for its edible tubers in China, there are some named varieties[183, 200]. It requires a 7 month frost-free growing season in order to produce a crop[116, 117]. Plants perform best at temperatures between 30 - 35°c during the leafy stage of growth, and about 5°c lower when the tubers are being formed[206]. This species is unlikely to succeed outdoors in Britain, though by starting the plants off early in a greenhouse it might be possible to obtain reasonable yields in good summers[K].

Edible Uses*

* See disclaimer
Edible Rating: 3/5
Corm - raw or cooked[2, 46, 61, 63, 103]. A delicious taste, it is sweet and crisp when fully ripe and is starchy before that[116, 183]. Widely used in Chinese cooking, especially in chop suey. A flour or starch can be made from the dried and ground up corm and this is used to thicken sauces and to give a crisp coating to various deep-fried foods[183]. The root is about 4cm in diameter[206], it contains about 36% starch[193]. A nutritional analysis is available[218]. The plant is used for making salt in Zimbabwe[183]. No more details.

• Root - includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.
• Salt - plants that provide a substitute for salt.

Medicinal Uses*

* See disclaimer
Medicinal Rating: 1/5
The plant is used to treat a number of ailments including abdominal pain, amenorrhoea, hernia and liver problems[218]. The expressed juice of the tuber is bactericidal[218].

• Antibacterial - Kills bacteria.
• Miscellany - Various medicinal actions that need more clarification.

Propagation

Seed - we have no details for this species but suggest sowing the seed as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse. Only just cover the seed and place the pot in 3cm of water to keep the soil wet. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Division. Harvest the tubers at the end of the growing season, store them in a cool but frost-free place over the winter and plant them out in early spring.

Known Hazards

None known

Other Uses

The leaf stems are used for weaving bags etc[193].

• Weaving - Items such as grass and palm leaves that are woven together for making mats, baskets etc. See also Basket making and Fibre.

Cultivars

'' - No entries have been made for this species as yet.

References

The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Huxley. A.
Author: Huxley. A.
Rating:
Publisher : Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
Date of Publication : 1992

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