Dianthus chinensis, China Pink, Chinese Pink, Dianthus, Pinks

Dianthus chinensis, commonly called China pink is a short-lived perennial garden plant belonging to Caryophyllaceae (Pink family). The plant is native to northern China (Gansu, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, and Xinjiang), Korea, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and southeastern Russia and has naturalized in southern China. Popular common names of the plants are Annual Pink, China Pink, Chinese Pink, Dianthus, Pinks, French Mignonette, Indian Pink, Japanese Pink, and Rainbow Pink. Genus name comes from the Greek words dios meaning divine and anthos meaning flower. Specific epithet means of China. It is a perennial herbaceous plant with great ornamental, botanical, ecological, and medicinal value.

China Pink Facts

Plant Description

China pink is a small, glabrous, herbaceous, biennials, or short-lived perennials garden plant that normally grows about 30–50 cm high. The plant is found growing in forest edges, forest grasslands, scrub on mountain slopes, hillside grasslands, dry hillsides, sandy hill summits, valleys, rocky ravines, meadows, streamsides, mountain stream wetlands, rocks, steppes, steppe sands, fixed dunes, seashores and sparse forests. The plant requires well-drained, neutral to slightly alkaline soil and full sun to partial shade. The stem is erect or ascending, branched dichotomously and distally, glabrous or sparsely pubescent with minute hairs, the rootstock is stout and short.

Leaves

Leaves are simple, opposite, densely clustered near the base, linear-lanceolate, about 3-5.5 cm long and  0.2-0.4 cm wide, base slightly connate, margin entire, thickened, apex acuminate, midrib thick, tri-nerved, or Penta-nerved. Radical leaves are about 5-6.5 cm long while cauline leaves are about 2-4 cm long, becoming smaller towards the apex, glabrous, petiole sessile. The leaves are green to greyish green colored. The basal leaves are usually already withered during flowering; the leaves remain on the stem.

Flower

Inflorescence usually occurs in the terminal, few-flowered or solitary. Flowers are bisexual, pedicel about 2-5 mm long, bracts 4, paired, ovate, margins scarious, bracteoles 4, broadly cuspidate, about half as long as calyx, with foliaceous points, calyx tubular or subcylindrical, veins 7, without scarious commissures, apically 5 toothed, teeth triangular, with acuminate tip, margins ciliolate, scarious, about 8.5-11 mm long and 2-3.5 mm across, petals 5, free, spathulate-obovate, white, dark pink, purplish, base clawed, pubescent, auricles absent, margin acutely serrate, incurved, apex bifid, about 2.5-3.5 mm long. Stamens usually 10, filaments distinct, anthers 2-locular, dark blue or purplish, dorsifixed, staminodes absent, nectarines present. Ovary superior, unilocular, ovules numerous, staminodes absent, gynophore long, styles 2, filiform, stigmas. Flowering normally takes place between July to August.

Fruit

Fertile flowers are followed by capsule, sub-sessile, ovoid-cylindrical, and dehiscing by 4 teeth, carpophores present. Seeds are many, flattened-roundish, compressed Dorsi-ventrally, blackish brown, embryo erect, granulate.

Traditional uses and benefits of China Pink

• The Chinese pink has been used for over 3,000 years in Chinese herbal medicine.
• The whole plant is a bitter tonic herb that encourages the digestive and urinary systems and also the bowels.
• It is also anthelmintic, antibacterial, anti-phlogistic, diaphoretic, diuretic, emmenagogue, febrifuge and hemostatic.
• It is used internally in the treatment of acute? urinary tract infections (especially cystitis), urinary stones, constipation? and failure to menstruate and externally to treat skin inflammations and swellings.
• The old leaves are crushed and used for clearing eyesight.
• Qu Mai (dried aerial parts of Dianthus chinensis) is used in Chinese herbal medicine to promote urination and menstruation, to break up blood stasis and to treat red, sore and swollen eyes.
• This herb is used as a folk remedy for the treatment of menostasis, gonorrhea and cough and as a diuretic and emmenagogue in Korea.
• The plants are harvested just before the flowers open and are dried for later use.

Culinary Uses

• Like most Dianthus, it has a pleasant spicy, floral, clove-like taste and is ideal for decorating or adding to cakes.
• They also make a colorful garnish to soups, salads, and the punch bowl.
• It is advisable to remove the bitter white base of the petal.
• Fresh dianthus petals added in to liven up salads, sandwiches, and pies.
• In addition, the petals of the flowers, when crystallized, make beautiful decorations for cakes and pastries.

Other Facts

• The species is popularly cultivated as an ornamental garden plant.
• It is excellent for beds, borders, edgings, rock gardens, and pots.

Precautions

• Dianthus can stimulate the uterus, so you should not use it for pregnant or lactating females.
• Overdosage of dianthus can cause prolonged contractions of the uterus.

References