Studies on the Cultivation and Preparation of Platycodon Root. III. Effect of Picking Flower and Fruit on the Quality of Skin Peeled Root

Abstract

The method for the determination of saponins by thin layer chromatography (TLC)-densitometry and an improved colorimetric method on inulin using Sep-Pak purification were applied on Platycodon root.Picking the flowers of Platycodon grandiflorum A. DC. during cultivation markedly increased the root weight. However, picking flowers or fruit did not affect the content of dilute ethanol-soluble or water-soluble extract defined by JP XII, saponin or inulin in Platycodon root.It is concluded that picking the flowers of P. grandiflorum is favorable for increasing the yield of the root growth without altering the chemical constituents.