Chinese herb "Wuxiangcao" is the whole plant of the Lamiaceae plant, Isatis tinctoria, mainly distributed in Suzhou, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, and eastern Jiangxi. Wuxiangcao has the effects of relieving surface, dispelling heat, regulating qi, and relieving pain. It is used for the treatment of symptoms such as colds, heatstroke, qi stagnation, stomach pain, sore throat, boils, and centipede bites.
Wuxiangcao is an annual aromatic herb, growing 30-40 centimeters tall and branching. The stem is square, sparsely covered with short pubescence.
Leaves are opposite, lanceolate, 2-3 centimeters long, 5-8 millimeters wide, tapering at the apex, wedge-shaped at the base, with sparse serrations, smooth, and densely covered with glands on the lower surface. The leaf stalk is 5 millimeters long.
The lax terminal inflorescence is borne on the top; the bracts are very small, nearly circular, with short pointed tips; the flowers are about 6 millimeters long. The calyx is bell-shaped, 5-lobed, and covered with short hairs; the corolla is pale red, twice as long as the calyx, with an erect upper lip with a notch and a 3-lobed lower lip, with the central lobe being the largest.
There are 4 stamens, with the posterior stamens or upper stamens slightly protruding from the corolla, with 2 widely divergent locules, and the anterior stamens or lower stamens degenerate; there is 1 pistil, with a deeply 4-lobed ovary, a slightly protruding style, and 2-lobed stigma of unequal size.
The small nut is brown, round, reticulate, with small glands, and has a distinct hilum at the base. The flowering period is from September to October, and the fruiting period is from October to November.
Wuxiangcao prefers to grow in fertile soil on rural slopes or under trees, and is most distributed in Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, and eastern Jiangxi provinces in China.
Wuxiangcao has a natural aroma and a strong taste, making it a unique condiment in rural cuisine. Wuxiangcao can remove the taste of animal meat, so when making some meat dishes, you can pick two or three leaves of Wuxiangcao, cut them into sections, and stir-fry or stew them with the dish. Its rich fragrance will whet your appetite.
Wuxiangcao is also a traditional Chinese medicinal herb with the effects of relieving surface, dispelling heat, regulating qi, and relieving pain. Modern pharmacological studies have confirmed that the water decoction of Wuxiangcao has antibacterial effects and can promote lymphatic transformation in healthy individuals and patients with acute nephritis, and has immunomodulatory effects.
Therefore, Wuxiangcao is a good medicine for treating heatstroke, colds, and stomach pain. For internal use, it can be taken as a decoction, with a dose generally less than 45 grams. For external use, the fresh herb can be crushed and applied directly.
