Common Name:

General Information

Cymbopogon distans is an evergreen, clump-forming, perennial grass with erect to ascending culmd growing 50 - 100cm tall. The plant becomes shortly rhizomatous with age, slowly spreading to eventually form moderate-sized clumps[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for use as a medicine and essential oil.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

E. Asia - central and southern China (Gansu, Guizhou, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan), Pakistan, Nepal, northwest India

Habitat

Mountain slopes, valleys, open grassy places; 2,000 - 3,500 metres[]. The dominant grass on dry rocky hot slopes; at elevations between 900 - 1,200 metres in India.

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Perennial
Height	0.80 m
Pollinators	Wind
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Cymbopogon distans is native to warm temperate and subtropical regions of China.
Species in this genus generally grow best in a sunny position in a moisture-retentive but well-drained soil. Many of them are found in dry soils in the wild[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The essential oil is used medicinally[].

Other Uses

A lemon-scented essential oil is extracted from this species for medicinal and industrial purposes[].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow or only just cover, sowing the seeds in trays in a greenhouse. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots at the 3 - 4 leaf stage and grow on for at least their first winter under glass. Plant out when in active growth in early summer and consider giving some winter protection for the first year or two.
Division of established clumps. This is best done annually or they can become too crowded and suffer. The offshoots of this species often fail to establish[].