The origin of name：

The name Mesona was first seen in Chinese MedicinePlant Field Guide. In “Zhi Fan Dian”, it was called immortal grass, field grass, wash grass, immortal grass jelly, dry immortal grass, or immortal grass uncle. Atayal people call it Supurekku, and Paiwan people call it Ryarikan. Its English name is Mesona or Chinese Mesona.

Three legends for the name of Mesona：

•The first legend：

In the past, boiling little amount of Mesona dry stems and leaves, and adding little starch into the filtered soup could produce big amount of Mesona jelly, so people believed that this grass contained an exceptional function of turning little amount to big amount. Only immortal could do this, so they believed that this grass was a magical grass given by immortals, and hence called it immortal grass.

•The second legend：

The transportation in the past was not convenient, so people walked in and out. It was easy for people to get sick when they rushed to walk in a hot day, so people dried out the grass with special fragrant, and boiled it into tea for people who got sunstroke to drink. People with sunstroke recovered very fast after drinking this, so people believed that this grass with magical effect should be given by immortals, and hence call it immortal grass.

•The third legend：

Someone in Fujian was collecting herb to cure his mom with sunstroke, but he got sunstroke too. He found naturally formed Mesona jelly after wakening, so he collected Mesona to cure his mom. Because of this magical effect for sunstroke, it was called “Mesona”.

For relatedintroduction and legend for Characteristics Mesona, please see Wikipedia at

https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BB%99%E8%8D%89

Website of Guanxi Farmers’ Association ----About Mesona---- Mesona little tips

http://www.kuanhsi.org.tw/grass_jelly.php

Picture is provided by Ren-shan-cao – Mesona tea

http://www.superbuy.com.tw/series.php?pl_id=130