Plants ordered now will begin shipping mid to late October. First come first served.
Ma-huang (Ephedra sinica) potted seedling, organic
$8.50
Hello Friends,
If you come to this page and Ma-huang plants are (again) out of stock, please hit “waitlist” once again–we are in the process of growing more plants and will re-enable as soon as they size up.
Richo
Family: Joint Fir (Ephedraceae)
Hardy to Zones 3 to 9
Evergreen perennial paleo-herb. Dioecious–both male and female plants must be present in order to make seed. Both male and female plants are used interchangeably for medicinal purposes. Native to the steppes of Northern China, Ma-huang prospers in full sun, dry soils, and is quite cold-tolerant (our patch bravely survived an 18 inch snow cover that occurred during a particularly cold Southern Oregon winter). Preparation of the right microsite is particularly important for a plant of this nature, which must maintain a dry, warm crown during the growing season lest the crown begin to rot. The best preparation is to spread about 4 inches of sand on the surface, then plant the ma-huang through the sand, with its roots down in the mineral soil and sand all around the crown. This excellent drainage and the reflection of the sun up onto the plant will greatly improve the health, growth and survivability of ma-huang. Traditional usage: TCM, the tea is used as a bronchial dilator for treating asthma. CNS stimulant. Overdose can be dangerous. Space plants 3 feet apart.
Potted seedling, 4-inch deep pot, the aerial parts are about 6 inches, these are unsexed, seedgrown individuals, Certified Organically grown
Out of stock
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Belinda Phongsavane (verified owner) –
My Ma-huang is amazing. It has taken time to grow, but I do love it. I would love to purchase more and wish I had.
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Question
Syl –
Hi Richo,
Would these thrive in the same climate as the North American species? I’m at 5000 ft just north of the Chihuahuan desert. Mormon tea grows wild around here. I think this would be a fun specimen in the garden, but I’m worried it might be too dry here compared to the native habitat for this plant, and I don’t like to plant things that will need ongoing irrigation past the first couple years. There’s minimal ambient humidity, 310 days of sun, and only 9 inches of rain annually, most of it from the summer monsoon.
Thanks!
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Richo Cech –
Hello Syl,
Thanks for all the environmental info, sure helps! Like the American Ephedras, Ma-huang is drought tolerant once established. All the Ephedraceae are going to need watering in the first year or two after transplant. Elevation in this case is a plus. Reading the Ephedra monographs in “Growing Plant Medicine Vol 1” will bring you to the next level.
Richo
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Question
Thomas –
If a seedling is purchased, should the other sex plant also be bought, or can they propagate alone?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Thomas, Thanks for contacting. For herbal use, both male and female are interchangeably useful. For the purpose of making seeds, both male and female need to be present. Since these are unsexed seedlings it would make sense to buy 3 if both sexes are desired. richo
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Question
Juanita –
Does this ship to Canada?
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Richo Cech –
hello juanita, sorry, no, no live roots or plants to Canada, only seeds, books and dried herbs, richo
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Ghost Train –
Outta stock 😡. Will this sucker grow in panhandle FloRida?
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Richo Cech –
hello Ghost Train. Thanks for contacting. Just like anything I guess these are easy to grow once you know how. One thing, they do like a sandy soil and that can be found in the panhandle I think. Normally from a colder zone, I find that they perennialize nicely in warm conditions and it really seems to be not a problem. We have these on an ongoing basis, please hit waitlist. Richo
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Question
Candace Jania –
Can you keep and grow this inside?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Candace, Thanks for writing. Yes, we have indoor ma-huangs that have done fine in pots for many years here. This is out of stock right now but we will re-enable in January and for once I think we will not quickly sell out. Hit waitlist. Richo
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Question
Kelly –
I received my ephedra seeds from your site. There is no indication of how deep to plant these seeds.
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Richo Cech –
hi kelly, standard planting depth for any seed is the same depth that the seed is wide. ephedra will work fine this way, or you can actually plant the seeds up to 1 inch deep in pure sand. given that the seedlings tend to fall over, the deeper planting method tends to give them a more solid foundation, and can be helpful. make sure to give plenty of light and heat from above, and do not overwater after germination, or risk damping off. You can find all this info and more in my book “Growing Plant Medicine Vol 1,” pages 299 to 303. richo
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Kelly –
Thank you so very much!
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Question
Cate (verified owner) –
Hello! I received my seedling, thank you!! I live in the Sand Hills of North Carolina, zone 7a/b. We have fairly mild winters here and I was wondering if I should prepare a place and plant my seedling outside right now or if I should overwinter it in a pot in a sunny window and plant it outdoors in the spring? I really don’t want my little plant to die! Thank you!!
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Richo Cech –
Hi Cate,
I had somewhat smaller stock that I planted outdoors last year in the fall and most of them came through fine–better than if they had been potted–ma-huang likes outdoor conditions better than indoor–it is a wild plant of the northern steppes. MAke sure to use the mineral mulch to keep the crown dry, mark the plant, prohibit weeds, etc. I use a mixture of coarse sand and white pumice around mine. Plant right down into the dirt. Don’t use any fertilizer or compost. Check pages 299 to 302 of “Growing Plant Medicine” for more details. Richo
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Question
Elaine –
How does the waitlist work?
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Richo Cech –
Hello Elaine,
Thanks for contacting. Waitlists pop up on out-of-stock items. When you leave your e-mail on that item waitlist, that means you get an e-mail immediately when the product becomes available again. Ma-huang plants are enabled twice yearly and sell out within a matter of hours.
Richo
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Richo Cech –
hello chrea, thanks for writing and for wanting these plants. we can’t even send seeds to the UK these days, no less plants. you would think the UK, with so many gardening enthusiasts, would have relaxed the rules at brexit. but they didn’t. richo
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Lexxi Corp. –
🌟✨⭐️✨🌟
——————
Extremely Rare!!!!
___________
⭐️🌟⭐️🌟⭐️
Great plant, Very hard to get due to availability and extreme popularity!!!
Been on waiting list for over a year.
Expect to wait a great deal of times.
Care for it like a cactus, succulent
and a tropical. Better on the dry side for the soil and roots, but cool humid
One the stems.
It’s a picky finicky plant. Don’t recommend freezing temperatures, but it likes cool humid (on above ground parts) and warm and dry on the roots.
🥇
Real Treasure!
🤹🏿♀️
Hard to grow
🤹🏾♀️
rare
😍
Worth the wait
💰 Pricey
🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨
Good Luck!
✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨🍀🍀🍀🍀🍀
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Richo Cech –
hi lexxi, thanks for your excellent review on this favorite sp. A few years back somebody raked me over the (what, not coals, pumice perhaps?) about scanty supplies on the ma-huang so… we quadrupled the size of our mother patch and have offered significant growouts of plants three times in the last year. True, the plants sell out fast, so make sure you’re still on the waitlist, because every time we list another growout, the e-mails go out and the waitlist is scrubbed. richo
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LexxiCorp –
Thanks 😊 I was finally able to get some seeds can’t wait to order the potted plants!
What specific lamp do you recommend for sprouting and growing seedlings, would a 1K- metal halide be too much light? And also how close.
What are the Temperature specs; and other details so I can orchestrate the Symphony of science and success!
This will be my first attempt with this one, hope to post pictures of Victory!!!
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Richo Cech –
Hi Lexxi, thanks for writing and this is actually really easy. I just planted several thousand of these seeds and germination took exactly 16 days. I used a sandy medium, planted the seeds 1 inch deep, watered daily, and kept the flats in a solar greenhouse with no supplemental light or heat. Best germination temperatures should oscillate between 60 and 80 degrees F. Back off on watering after the seedlings emerge. If a solar greenhouse is unavailable, then use an 8-bulb T-5 grow light oriented 6 inches above the flats to start. Turn the lights on at dawn and off at sunset. This gentle light and heat from above will germinate the seeds. Once they emerge, lift the lights to minimum 18 inches above the flat. A 1 K metal halide light is not for a germination setup. You might make do with it, oriented well above the flat, and test the temperature so that it corresponds to the specifics given above.
richo
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Question
ChreayBoi –
Are there no more left? And can anyone ship to England?
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Richo Cech –
hello chrea, we always have more ma-huang plants coming on, and we cannot ship plants to England. richo
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Question
BECKY –
CAN YOU GROW THE MA HUANG IN A POT?
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Richo Cech –
yes, these plants that i am listing here are potted. so yes. r
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Alexis –
Hi curious I was just notified of this product being in stock yet their gone already when is the next batch coming out is it possible to reserve how many plants are usually in a batch just trying to increase my opportunities to buy have bought your products before and I like them I very much would recommend your products its just sad I have been trying for over a year to buy and luck
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Richo Cech –
hi alexis, thanks for getting in touch and sorry you missed out on this batch of ma-huang seedlings. We’ll have plenty come spring. here’s the text that you might not have seen: Hi friends, Enabled a small number of these on 7_21_2022. One per order, please. If you get here and the plants are already sold out, please remember to hit “waitlist” again. We’re working up more. Richo
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Question
Andrew –
Hi, Do you have anymore available?
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Richo Cech –
please hit “waitlist,” we will enable sales again in 2022. r
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B.W. –
I’m in southern Oregon , hour northeast from klamath falls at 4200ft elevation and I was wondering if they would do well in my area? I have plenty of greenhouse space used strictly to grow many medicinal plants but we must be careful with what we choose to invest our resources in because of the very harsh growing climate we have during winters. (Regular night temps in the teens with occasional below zero nights) but beautiful mild summers that most plants love
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Richo Cech –
The secret to getting good yields from ma-huang is to plant them in situ in fast draining soil outdoors. the plant is native to siberia, it will not succumb to cold at elevation in southern oregon. we have seeds available right now–keep clicking. r
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Cultivating –
Restock?
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Richo Cech –
yes, just restocked, hurry. richo
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MICHELLE STIMAK –
I am sorry, when did you post this? Anything still available? I saw patients all day and could not step away. My fault. Did not think anything would be available again as I did not receive an email back from you. Please let me know. Thx.
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Richo Cech –
Hi Michelle, I am very sorry, the potted plants we enabled were many and they were gone in a few hours. Yes, the plants in the field are now in full flower, we will have more ma-huang in the future. richo
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Question
Peggy gray –
I just tried to order Thema huang as you sent me a message that I was taken off the waitlist as it is available. And now it tells less than 3hohrs after you sent the message it is NOT AVAILABLE! Is it available or not?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Peggy,
I am sorry, in answer to your question, the plant is not available, the plant is again sold out.
Richo
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Ryan Wham –
Yikes! Didn’t get my card number in on time either!!!
Please sprout more if possible.
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Richo Cech –
Yes, the plants in the field are now in full flower, we will have more ma-huang in the future.
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Robert Parker –
Hello I just got an email saying I could purchase some seedlings after being on a wait list for ages and it tells me there not available???? R they or not? If not when will they be pls??
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Richo Cech –
hi robert, I am very sorry, the potted plants we enabled were many and they were gone in a few hours. Yes, the plants in the field are now in full flower, we will have more ma-huang in the future. richo
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Ryan Wham –
Thanks for all you do Richo!
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bluesplayer –
I Finally got a ephedra senica plant to grow from seed after going through $30 worth of seed!
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bluesplayer –
Am I Still On the wishlist for ephedra senica?. You were sold out before I could aquire one. Can You Save Me One this time? I’ll prepay for it so it will not be sold out again before I can respond to your e-mail that it is available!
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Richo Cech –
Hello bluesplayer, please click “waitlist” again to be informed when the next batch of ma-huang plants is available for sale. We can’t take prepayment, we really only want to take money for stuff we actually have in stock. richo
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JanIce Vickers Storss –
I’m looking forward to it. I need the tea for my asthma so i can breathe. Thank you.
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Question
MWLyon –
Hi Richo.
I just got notification that this was available. In less than two hours it seems to have sold out. Is this true or is it still available?
Thank you,
MWLyon
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Richo Cech –
order now and do not hesitate
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Ryan C –
I am having the same problem. You telling us to “just order” is not helpful! There is no option for me to place an order.
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Richo Cech –
Hello Ryan,
I am sorry, I enabled this in good faith and re-enabled it after several people missed out, because I had held back 20 plants for that express situation. I then told those people to try again, and many of them got plants. That was the best I could do. We will be offering these again.
Richo
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Katherine Spinks –
Hope to be to get plants soon. Many thanks
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Richo Cech –
Hi Katherine, I hear ya and the plants are doing well here and getting bigger. Will ship soon. richo
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MICHELLE STIMAK –
Yes, I would like to order 2 plants asap. Just got the email. Am an NP that uses functional medicine & truly need your help with this. I use it to help pts get off of their ADHD meds over time as well as for severe covid residual lung issues. Please reply. THx so much. MS 208-484-9295
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Richo Cech –
order now and do not hesitate
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Question
Joe –
I just received an email saying these are back in stock, but the site hasn’t been updated. I added my email again to the wait list. Please let me know when its available! Thanks!
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Richo Cech –
order now and do not hesitate
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Question
Christina –
Is it out of stock all ready? I just got the email an hour ago saying it was in stock….
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Richo Cech –
order now and do not hesitate
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Question
Draz –
I just received an email telling me this plant is back in stock but it still shows out is stock. Did they sell out this quick or is the website outdated?
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Richo Cech –
order now and do not hesitate
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Allison McCormick –
hi this plant is always out of stock. i did manage to get some blue ephedra though, so im trying to build my collection. but im also a beginner. what type of soil and where can i get good soil for it and a life saver (sorry if off topic or side topicing?) i hate to ask the source but i dont want to fail the plants and wanted to know what you used or if you could point me in the right direction? lifesaver cactus and the blue ephedra (mormon tea). cactus gets burnt using the home depot succulant soil and the blue uses a lot of sand?
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Richo Cech –
Hi Allison,
It is going to be a feeding frenzy, but get ready, we have a nice set of ma-huang coming on and will list it soon.
Richo
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Question
Monique Raymond –
Hello. I have two of these plants , and they flowered this year (so excited). One of the plants has fruits, are they edible ? If they are edible , is there a limit to how many one could eat. Do the fruits have the same actions as the stems?
Thank you so much.
Monique
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hi Monique,
Thanks for the report. Sounds like you must have a male and a female, which is what everyone wishes they had! The fruits are edible and nontoxic by my personal testing. They are vaguely sweet. They do not seem to be a CNS stimulant, although the juiciness of them, and their light mucilage, is refreshing. The seeds inside the fruits probably should not be consumed–they can contain high levels of ephedrine. If you allow the fruits to fully mature until they are ready to fall from the plant, then you can collect the seeds and successfully plant them.
Richo
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Monique Raymond –
Thank you so much : ) . I consider myself fortunate to have the male and female. I’m very happy to be on this ride with nature, learning every step of the way.
Sincerest gratitude ,
Monique
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Question
Josh –
A couple questions. I was wondering if you knew of or had a method for cultivating the seeds from this plant and also if it is able to be cloned? I live in Minnesota and while we do get pretty brutal winter storms we also have what sounds like perfect soil for this beautiful Bush to grow.
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Admin Richo Cech –
Hi Josh, Yes, the directions are on the packet and in the monograph on our website, but basically you plant them in sand and water daily, keeping very warm and in the light. These are of confirmed germination. The plants will send out lateral rhizomes and make new shoots (ramets) at a distance, and these can be removed from the parent plant and replanted. As always, a thick mulch of coarse sand or white pumice makes the difference between success and failure. richo
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