Species · genus Asparagus · Asparagaceae

Chinese Asparagus

Asparagus cochinchinensis (Lour.) Merr.

Also known as: Lucid Asparagus · Wild Asparagus

Growth habit

perennial

Native range

Cambodia, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Hainan, Japan, Korea, Laos, Nansei-shoto, Philippines, Taiwan, Tibet, Vietnam

Asparagus cochinchinensis — reference photo — no rights reserved · CC0

Cultivars of A. cochinchinensis

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under A. cochinchinensis yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

A Perennial from Asia

Asparagus cochinchinensis is a perennial member of the asparagus family, grown as much for its curiosity as for any ornamental fuss. It belongs to the same genus as the vegetable asparagus, sharing that lineage's tuberous roots and wiry stems.

Source: Kew

A Wide Native Range

This species is native to a broad sweep of eastern Asia, from Japan down through Indo-China to the Philippines, including North Luzon. Its native range also takes in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan, Hainan, Tibet, and several regions of China. It grows chiefly within the temperate biome, and was first formally described in 1919, though it carries a long list of older synonyms reaching back to 1790.

Source: Kew

Family Traits

As a member of the genus Asparagus, this plant can be evergreen or deciduous, sometimes climbing, and it grows from a tuberous rootstock. Rather than true leaves, it bears small scale-like leaves alongside larger, leaf-like phylloclades that do the work of foliage. Small white or pinkish flowers appear along the stems, followed by red berries.

Source: RHS

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 14 days

Humidity

Medium

Temperature

13–24 °C

Soil mix

Fertile, well-draining loam-based mix

Propagation

Division of tuberous roots, or seed

Fertilizing

Light balanced feed monthly during active growth

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Tiny fragrant white flowers, rarely indoors

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Not yet documented

This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 7-14d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Chinese Asparagus yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — and a clear photo of your plant are exactly what keep this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.