• Image of Asarum porphyronotum var. atrovirens 'Irish Spring'||
  • Image of Asarum porphyronotum var. atrovirens 'Irish Spring'||
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Asarum porphyronotum var. atrovirens 'Irish Spring'

Irish Spring Wild Ginger

This plant is not currently for sale. This is an archive page preserved for informational use.

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Item #: 12966

Zones: 7b to 9b, at least

Dormancy: Evergreen

Height: 6" tall

Culture: Light Shade to Shade

Origin: China

Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)


Logo indicating plant is one of Plant Delights' Introductions

Asarum porphyronotum (pronounced "poor firo - no tum") 'Irish Spring' is a lovely 2017 Plant Delights introduction of a little-known Chinese wild ginger species. Asarum porphyronotum 'Irish Spring' has very glossy, deeply-impressed evergreen leaves...the only ginger we grow that uses leaf gloss every morning. Asarum 'Irish Spring' slowly spreads underground via stolons to form a 2' wide patch in 10 years...assuming you provide moist woodland conditions like it enjoys in the wilds of Sichuan, China. Actually we've also found it to be quite drought tolerant in a garden setting. In February, take a peek under the leaves to see the fascinating flowers, composed of tan and olive speckled petals with a central eye zone of white dots that age to light purple surrounded by a black-purple ring. If using wild gingers for gardening isn't enough, Asarum porphyronotum also contains potent oils, long used in traditional Chinese medicine to induce sweats, fevers, as a diuretic, and to induce auto-immune kidney failure. Imagine what they'd treat you with if they didn't like you? Due to our limited supply, it will be many years before we have enough to offer this again.