deer tongue

Discussion in 'HortForum' started by The Green Chemist, Jun 17, 2015.

  1. The Green Chemist

    The Green Chemist New Member

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    Michigan, USA
    Hello,
    This is my first post to this forum so I hope I am posing my question in the proper place. I am interested in growing a plant that is commonly called "deer tongue" and noted for its vanilla fragrance. From what I have gathered, coumarin (a biological active component of deer tongue) is the compound responsible for its vanilla fragrance. When I searched online to purchase seeds, I have come across several different botanical names that refer to the common name deer tongue, such as:

    Dichanthelium clandestinum
    Carphephorus odoratissimus
    Liatris odoratissima
    Trilisa odoratissima


    among others. (Not to be confused with Deer Tongue lettuce.) Any recommendations as to which seeds I should purchase?
     
  2. Sundrop

    Sundrop Well-Known Member

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    Kootenays, BC, Canada
    The first one is a grass. There is no mention of fragrance when you search the Net for Dichanthelium clandestinum fragrance.

    The last three are very closely related (belong to the same tribe) and similar search brings the information that Carphephorus odoratissimus has strong vanilla fragrance, Trilisa odoratissima has vanilla fragrance and Liatris odoratissima has mild vanilla fragrance.
     
  3. The Green Chemist

    The Green Chemist New Member

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    Thank you. I greatly appreciate your reply. I saw seeds (Carphephorus odoratissimus) for sale at Amazon and in the product description it stated "It is restricted in distribution to the Southeast Coastal Plain." I could not find any information on whether or not it could be grown as a perennial in the state of Michigan (USDA zone 6a/5b). Is there a database to which one can refer to find this kind of information? I visited he USDA GRIN website, but to no avail.
     

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