The Chinese medicinal herb, Tu Ren Shen Ye, is cultivated in central and southern China. It is commonly used to treat insufficient breast milk production, as well as boils and abscesses. Tu Ren Shen Ye is known for its properties in promoting lactation and reducing swelling and toxicity.
Image of Tu Ren Shen Ye
Tu Ren Shen Ye refers to the leaves of the plant Lulan. The leaves are harvested in the summer and autumn seasons, and can be used fresh or dried.
Lulan is an herbaceous plant, either annual or perennial, with a height of 30 to 100 centimeters. The main root is thick and conical in shape, with a few branches. The skin of the root is dark brown, while the cross-section is milky white in color.
The stem is erect and fleshy, with a slightly woody base. It may have some branches and is cylindrical in shape, sometimes with grooves. The leaves are opposite or nearly opposite, with short petioles or almost no petioles.
The leaf blade is slightly fleshy, inverted-ovate or inverted-ovate-elliptic in shape, measuring 5 to 10 centimeters in length and 2.5 to 5 centimeters in width. The apex is acute and sometimes slightly concave, with a short pointed tip. The base is narrow and wedge-shaped, with smooth edges.
Image of Tu Ren Shen Ye
The inflorescence is a terminal or axillary cyme, relatively large in size, often dichotomously branched, with a long peduncle. The Tu Ren Shen flowers are small, with a diameter of about 6 millimeters. The bracts are green or reddish, round in shape, with a rounded and blunt apex, measuring 3 to 4 millimeters in length. There are two bracteoles, membranous and lanceolate in shape, with an acute apex, measuring about 1 millimeter in length. The flower stalk is 5 to 10 millimeters long. The sepals are ovate and purple-red in color, and they fall off early.
The petals are pink or pale purplish-red, elongated-elliptic, inverted-ovate, or elliptic in shape, measuring 6 to 12 millimeters in length. The apex is rounded and blunt, sometimes slightly concave. There are (10 to) 15 to 20 stamens, shorter than the petals.
