Eastern Prince Schisandra

Schisandra chinensis Origin: Northeast Asia Improvement status: Cultivar Seeds per packet: ~20 BOTANICAL SAMPLE - NOT GERMINATION TESTED Life cycle: Perennial Shisandra is a perennial woody vine native to temperate Asia's far East, including Russia, northern China, Japan and Korea. Also known as "Five Flavor Vine" or "Magnolia Vine," it is incredibly cold hardy (to Zones 3 or 4). The bright red berries with a unique flavor are used fresh or most often dried as both a flavoring and an herbal medicine. The name "Five Flavor Berry" comes from the complex nature of the berry's taste, combining sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and pungent flavors. In traditional Chinese medicine, schisandra ("wu wei zi") is used much like ginseng or reishi mushroom, as a general tonic for everyday use, but it is also used specifically for stomach and liver problems (and recent studies have demonstrated a likely ability to aid the liver and nervous system specifically). Modern herbalists consider it an "adap