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The "Ezo-ibuki-torano-o" (Bistorta officinalis ssp. pacifica) belongs to Polygonaceae (the Knotweed family). It is a perennial herb that is found from the Yubari Mountains and the Central Highlands of Hokkaido to Rishiri Island and Rebun Island in Japan. It is also found in the northern Korean Peninsula, northeastern China, the Russian Far East, and Sakhalin. It grows in grasslands ranging from coastal areas to alpine regions and reaches a height of 30 to 100 cm. It grows taller than "Ibuki-torano-o". The basal leaves are ovate-elliptical with a heart-shaped base, while the stem leaves are smaller than the basal leaves. From July to September, it produces a cylindrical inflorescence about 3-6 cm long at the stem apex, bearing small, densely clustered flowers ranging in color from white to pale pink. The flowers lack petals, and 8-10 stamens protrude prominently. It is called "倒根拳参" (dao gen quan shen) in Chinese.
In Korean, it's called "cham-beom-kko-ri" (참범꼬리). This is a compound word consisting of "true" (cham: 참) + "tiger's tail" (peom-kko-ri: 범꼬리). "peom-kko-ri" gets its name from the fact that this cylindrical inflorescence resembles a "tiger's tail".
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