The Chinese medicine "Shuo Ze" is also known as "Jie Gu Cao". It is the whole herb or root of the honeysuckle family plant Shuo Ze. It has the effects of anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory, clearing heat and detoxifying, dispelling wind and removing dampness, promoting blood circulation and relieving pain, and promoting bone growth. It is mainly used to treat various inflammatory diseases. Let's analyze the efficacy and function of Shuo Ze for you on the Chinese Medicine and Chinese Medicine Network!
【Morphological characteristics of Shuo Ze】
Shuo Ze is a shrubby herbaceous plant that can grow up to 3 meters tall. It has a vertical main root and few lateral roots. The stem is angular, smooth and hairless, and branches frequently. The leaves are opposite, pinnately compound with odd number of leaflets, 5-9 leaflets in length, elliptic-lanceolate in shape, 8-15 centimeters long and 3-5 centimeters wide;
The apex is gradually pointed, the base is slightly rounded or broadly cuneate, and the margin has dense and sharp serrations. The upper side is dark green, the lower side is light green, and both sides are smooth and hairless, or there are short and soft hairs on the veins;
The petiole is about 3 centimeters long, without stipules, and the petiolules of the leaflets are short or almost absent. The compound umbel inflorescence is terminal, with a diameter of about 20-30 centimeters, and it has short soft hairs or is slightly hairy; the bracts are small and ovate-lanceolate;
The flowers are small, white, the calyx is 5-lobed, and the lower part is fused into a bell-shaped structure. The corolla is radial, 5-lobed, and the lobes are ovate; there are 5 stamens, which alternate with the lobes of the corolla, the filaments are short, and the anthers burst outward;
There is 1 pistil, the ovary is ovate, and the style is head-shaped; there are yellow cup-shaped glands interspersed among the flowers. The fruit is spherical, red, with a diameter of 3-4 millimeters. It blooms in August and bears fruit in October.
【Cultivation of Shuo Ze】
Shuo Ze prefers a shady and humid environment and is not strict in soil selection. Generally, deep and fertile loam can be used for cultivation. It is mainly propagated by rhizomes and should be done from late February to early March.
Dig up the underground rhizomes of the mother plant and select the thick and sprouted rhizomes, cut them into segments about 10-20 cm long for planting. Dig a trench with a row spacing of about 50 cm, 10 cm deep, place the rhizome segments flat in the trench with a spacing of 33-40 cm, cover with compost and wood ash, and then compact the soil.
After emergence, combine with inter-row cultivation and weeding, and apply organic fertilizer once using human and livestock manure water. Before winter, combine with field cleaning to perform one soil cultivation.
【Efficacy and function of Shuo Ze】
Chinese medicine believes that Shuo Ze has the effects of dispelling wind, removing dampness, promoting blood circulation, and resolving stasis. It is mainly used to treat rheumatism pain, nephritis edema, foot edema, dysentery, jaundice, chronic bronchitis, wind rash itching, erysipelas, abscesses, bruises, and fractures.
1. "Changsha Pharmacology": "Promotes blood circulation and regulates menstruation, dissolves stasis. It treats edema, dispels dampness, resolves masses, breaks up stagnant blood, washes away rash and itching, and applies to foot and knee swelling and pain."
2. "Classification of Medicinal Herbs": "The root treats muscle and bone pain, pain in both feet, and injuries from falls."
3. "Collection of Folk Prescriptions in Guizhou": "The stems and leaves have diuretic effects, treat foot swelling, and dispel wind and dampness. It can also be used externally to treat abscesses, boils, and snake and insect bites."
4. "Sichuan Materia Medica": "The root has diuretic effects, eliminates phlegm and lowers qi, treats jaundice and swelling, strengthens the spleen and stomach, and improves digestion."
