Chinese medicine "Rudi Wugong", also known as centipede grass, water centipede, inverted centipede, centipede grass, inverted unicorn, earth centipede, passing centipede, etc., is the rhizome of the plant Seven-fingered fern in the Polypodiaceae family. It commonly grows by the riverside, ditch, or in the wetlands of the forest, and has various effects such as clearing heat, resolving phlegm, and detoxifying snake venom.
"Rudi Wugong" is a perennial herbaceous plant with a height of 30-50cm. The rhizomes are creeping and horizontally spreading, purple-red on the outside and white on the inside, with numerous fleshy coarse roots (resembling centipedes hence the name).
The petiole is 20-30cm long and brownish: the trophophylls are palmate and bird's-foot-shaped, herbaceous, without hairs, usually trifurcated, 15-25cm long and 20-25cm wide, each fork consisting of a terminal segment and 12 pairs of lateral segments: the basal segments have short stalks, the central segments are elliptical to lanceolate, with pointed tips, wedge-shaped bases, wavy small serrations or nearly entire margins, prominent main veins, separated leaf veins, and 1-2 bifurcations.
The sporangial spikes are solitary, growing from the middle of the leaf base, with brownish stalks and green spikes: the sporangia are arranged in a ring on the receptacle, forming slender cylindrical shapes with uneven cock's comb-like protrusions at the top.
Characteristic features of "Rudi Wugong": a perennial herbaceous plant. Creeping stem, purple-red, rhizome nearly cylindrical, horizontal, with obvious nodes, with adventitious roots on the nodes, stem slender. Leaves linear, soft and smooth green leaves. It blooms in summer and autumn with pale green or white flowers, terminal inflorescences, spherical, with three elongated leaf-like bracts, hence the name "Three-pod grass".
1. Cough and asthma: Take 9g of "Rudi Wugong" and 3g of licorice, decoct with water and take orally.
2. Bruises and internal injuries: Take an appropriate amount of "Rudi Wugong", grind it into powder, take 2g each time, and take with rice wine or boiling water.
Soak "Rudi Wugong" in children's feces for forty-nine days, wash and dry, and grind into powder. Take six minutes each time, and take with wine or boiling water. ("Guangxi Medicinal Plant Atlas")
3. Dysentery: Take 9g of fresh "Rudi Wugong" and 20g of fresh Portulaca oleracea, mash and mix with salt water for oral administration.
