Aralia cordata
Name: Udo
Region: east Asia, China, Japan, Korea.
Habitat: thickets, thin woods, by streams, ravines; shaded places in forests, grasslands on slopes; elevations from 1,300 - 1,600 metres; very cold-tolerant when dormant.
Content: essential oil, saponins, sesquiterpenes, diterpene acids; about 1.1% protein, 0.42% fat, 0.8% soluble carbohydrate, 0.55% ash
Use: shoots are eaten in Japan, in salads, soups; substitute for ginseng
Botany
Perennial plant, growing 1.8 metres tall; mild and unique lemon-like, agreeable flavour.
Pollination: bees.