''Pseudognaphalium affine'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

belonging to the genus ''

Pseudognaphalium ''Pseudognaphalium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the sunflower family. Members of the genus are commonly known as cudweeds or rabbit tobacco ('' P. obtusifolium'' is the original species with that name). They are widespread in temperate ...

''. The species is widely distributed in

East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...

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South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...

Transcaucasus The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...

and

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

. The plant is biennial, with stems 15–40 cm long, the surface of the plant is covered with fine woolly hair and the leaves are small and rounded. The flowers appear as small florets with petal around 2 mm long. In

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

this plant is known as ''shǔqúcǎo'' (, lit. "mouse yeast grass") and used to make rice-flour pastry for the

Qingming Festival The Qingming festival or Ching Ming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day in English (sometimes also called Chinese Memorial Day or Ancestors' Day), is a traditional Chinese festival observed by the Han Chinese of mainland China, Hong Ko ...

; it is sometimes used to flavor the '' caozai guo'' consumed on

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Tomb Sweeping Day The Qingming festival or Ching Ming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day in English (sometimes also called Chinese Memorial Day or Ancestors' Day), is a traditional Chinese festival observed by the Han Chinese of mainland China, Hong Ko ...

in the spring. In

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

, it is known as ''hahakogusa'' or ''houkogousa'' ( or , lit. "mother and child grass"). ''G. affine'' is one of the herbs consumed during the Seven-Herbs Festival in the spring. In

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

, it is named rau khúc.

Uses

This plant has been used traditionally in

Traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...

and also features in the cuisine of East Asian Countries namely in

sweet rice Glutinous rice (''Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast Asia, Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, ...

confections. They include the

Kusa mochi Kusa or KUSA may refer to: * Kusa, Russia, a town in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia * Kusa, Latvia, a village in Madona District, Latvia * Kusa, Oklahoma, United States * Kusa, indigenous name of Beles River (in Gumuz language) * Kusa, Afghanistan ...

and the

Taiwanese Taiwanese may refer to: * Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien * Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa) * Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan * Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan * Taiwanese people, ...

chhú-khak-ké ''Chhau-a-koe'' is a type of kuih with a sweet dough made with glutinous rice flour, sugar, and a ground cooked paste of Jersey cudweed or Chinese mugwort. The herbs give the dough and the finished kuih a unique flavor and brownish green colo ...

'' (鼠麹粿/鼠麴草, 草仔粿). The plant is also ground up and used to give noodles and green onion pancakes (蔥油餅) a distinctive green colour and a unique flavour. This is an ingredient for a kind of

xôi ''Xôi'' () is a savory (''mặn'') or sweet (''ngọt'') Vietnamese dish made from glutinous rice and other ingredients. Xôi is a common on-the-go breakfast item, and a popular snack nationwide. Although it is often served as a breakfast or de ...

xôi khúc ''Xôi'' () is a savory (''mặn'') or sweet (''ngọt'') Vietnamese dish made from glutinous rice and other ingredients. Xôi is a common on-the-go breakfast item, and a popular snack nationwide. Although it is often served as a breakfast or d ...

and people usually use it for treatment of common cough.

References

affine Affine may describe any of various topics concerned with connections or affinities. It may refer to: * Affine, a relative by marriage in law and anthropology * Affine cipher, a special case of the more general substitution cipher * Affine comb ...

Flora of Nepal {{gnaphalieae-stub