***PLEASE NOTE: This is the handout provided to attendees at the 2014 Organic Growers School Spring Conference class Woodland Growing: Wasabi and ‘Wild Mountain Vegetables’ with Joe Hollis of Mountain Gardens. While it was intended to be read in conjunction with the speaker’s presentation, we believe it can still be a great resource. Enjoy!***
SANSAI PLANTS
first priority:
ramps Allium tricoccum
solomon’s seal Polygonatum commutatum
indian cucumber root Medeola virginiana
ostrich fern Matteucia struthiopteris
Hosta Hosta spp.
mitsuba, honewort Cryptotaenia canadensis
bamboo Phyllostachys spp.
udo Aralia cordata
kinome Zanthoxylum piperitum
woods nettle Laportea canadensis
next ten:
Jap. knotweed Polygonum cuspidatum
Canada lovage Ligusticum canadense
tall bellflower Campanula americana
anise root Osmorrhiza longistlis
aralia / acanthopanax spp. shrubby ginsengs
crinkle root / toothwort Dentaria diphylla
Smilax greenbrier
Chinese wolfberry Lycium chinense
arrowhead Sagittaria latifolia
Oenanthe water celery
From www.shizuokagourmet.com. This website has a nice photo of each item.
Allium victorialis ainu negi
thistle azami
akebia chocolate vine (fruit)
Polygonatum odoratum amadokoro
Petasites giant butterbur fukinoto
Glehnia littoralis hamaboufuu
Senecio cannabifolius hangonsou
Lonicera caerulea hascup hasukappu
flying spider monkey tree fern hikagehego
Urtica thunbergiana irakusa
Polgonum Japanese knotweed itadori
Erythronium dogtooth violet katakuri
Hosta fortunei plantain lily kiboushi
Matteucia (?) ostrich fern kogomi (exists as green & red)
Acanthopanax sciadophylloides koshiabura
Lycium Chinese wolfberry kuko
Clerodendron harlequin glory bower peanut butter shrub kusagi
silver vine (fruit) matatabi
canadense mitsuba Japanese honewort
Anemone faccida nirinsou
Allium macrostemon nobiru
Synurus pungens oyamabokuchi
Clethra barbinervis ryoubu
Actinidia arguta sarunashi
Japanese parsley seri
Portlaca common purslane suberiyu
bamboo shoots takenoko
Taraxacum dandelion tanpopo
Aralia elata tara no me
Equisetum (arvense?0 horsetail tsukushi
Adenophora triphylla tsuroganeninjin
Arali cordata udo
” ” yamaudo (bundle of blanched shoots)
Hosta montana urui
Pteridium aquilinum warabi
Vitis crimson glory vine (fruit)
wild horseradish yamawasabi
Osmunda japonica zenmai
aiko
akamizu
aomizu
Sansai – ‘wild mountain vegetables’
“Sansai convey a strong sense of spring and are a great favorite of vegetarians, often featuring in the menus of shojin ryori (zen buddhist cuisine)… The following is a list of the commonest plants used:
lamb’s quarters Chenopodium album var centrorubrum
asatsuki chive Allium ledebourianum
ashitaba Angelica keiskei
Japanese butterbur, unopened buds Petasites japonicus
chive Allium victorialia var platyphyllum
Japanese knotweed Polygonum cuspidatum
water shield Brasenia schreberi
licorice Glycyrrhiza uralensis
dog’s tooth violet Erythronium japonicum
ostrich fern fiddleheads Matteucia struthiopteris
indian plantain Cacalia delphiniifolia, C. hastata ssp. orientalis
sasa bamboo Sasa kurilensis
red garlic Allium grayi
plantain lily Hosta sieboldiana
saltwort Salsola komarovii
water dropwort Oenanthe javanica
green brier Smilax riparia
angelica tree shoots Aralia elata
field horsetail, fertile shoots Equisetum arvense
acanthopanax Acanthopanax gracilistylus
nettle Elatostema umbellatum v. majus
bracken Pteridium aquilinum v. latiusculum
udo Aralia cordata
aster Aster yomena
wormwood Artemisia princeps
royal fern Osmunda japonica “
Richard Hosking A Dictionary of Japanese Food (Tuttle, 1995)
Another list of plants is in the Wikipedia article on sansai.
For more information and availability of seeds and bare root planting stock, please visit:
www.mountaingardensherbs.com
There are some plant videos on line: Mountain Gardens @ youtube
Joe Hollis
Mountain Gardens
joehollisherbs@gmail.com
Author: Jenn Cloke
Jenn Cloke, originally from Atlanta, has lived in Western North Carolina for since 2006 and wears her Appalachian mantle proudly. Jenn was the Communications Coordinator for Organic Growers School from 2012 to 2014. She and her family run a small farm at the foot of Cold Mountain.