Flowers hold an important place in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), having been used for thousands of years to treat various illnesses and maintain health. Below is a comprehensive introduction to the most important and commonly used medicinal flowers in TCM.
Chrysanthemum (菊花 – Ju Hua)
Chrysanthemum is one of the most frequently used flowers in Chinese medicine, with properties that clear heat, resolve toxins, calm the liver, and brighten the eyes. TCM considers chrysanthemum slightly cold in nature, sweet and bitter in taste, entering the lung and liver meridians. It’s commonly used to treat wind-heat colds, headaches, dizziness, and red, swollen, painful eyes. Chrysanthemum tea is the most common method of consumption, and it can also be paired with goji berries to enhance its eye-brightening effects. White and yellow chrysanthemums have slightly different properties—white chrysanthemum is better for calming the liver and brightening eyes, while yellow chrysanthemum has stronger heat-clearing and toxin-resolving effects.
Honeysuckle (金銀花 – Jin Yin Hua)
Honeysuckle, also called lonicera flower, is a key herb for clearing heat and resolving toxins. It’s cold in nature and sweet in taste, entering the lung, heart, and stomach meridians, with functions of clearing heat, resolving toxins, and dispersing wind-heat. Honeysuckle is widely used to treat various heat-toxin conditions, including abscesses, carbuncles, sore throat, and erysipelas. In modern use, honeysuckle is commonly employed to treat colds with fever, sore throat, and various infectious diseases. It can be decocted alone or frequently combined with forsythia, mint, and other herbs.
Rose (玫瑰花 – Mei Gui Hua)
In Chinese medicine, rose is primarily used to regulate qi, resolve depression, invigorate blood, and disperse stasis. It’s warm in nature, sweet and slightly bitter in taste, entering the liver and spleen meridians. Rose is particularly suitable for treating chest tightness, gastric distension and pain, menstrual irregularities caused by liver qi stagnation. It’s especially beneficial for patients with emotional depression, premenstrual syndrome, and indigestion. Rose tea is a common dietary therapy method, and it can also be combined with Chinese angelica and white peony root for regulating menstruation and invigorating blood.
Safflower (紅花 – Hong Hua)
Safflower is an important herb for invigorating blood and resolving stasis. It’s warm in nature and acrid in taste, entering the heart and liver meridians. It has functions of invigorating blood, promoting menstruation, dispersing stasis, and relieving pain, commonly used to treat painful menstruation, amenorrhea, postpartum abdominal pain from blood stasis, and traumatic injuries. Safflower can promote blood circulation, but is contraindicated in pregnancy as it may cause miscarriage. Dosage must be carefully monitored, as excessive use may cause bleeding. Safflower is often combined with peach kernel, Chinese angelica, and other herbs.
Pagoda Tree Flower (槐花 – Huai Hua)
Pagoda tree flower, also called sophora flower, is commonly used to cool blood and stop bleeding. It’s slightly cold in nature and bitter in taste, entering the liver and large intestine meridians, with functions of cooling blood, stopping bleeding, clearing liver fire, and purging heat. Pagoda tree flower is mainly used to treat bleeding symptoms caused by blood heat, such as bloody stools, hemorrhoidal bleeding, and hematuria. It can also treat headaches and red eyes caused by liver fire. Pagoda tree flower can be charred to enhance hemostatic effects, while raw use provides better heat-clearing and blood-cooling properties.
Jasmine (茉莉花 – Mo Li Hua)
Jasmine is warm in nature, acrid and sweet in taste, entering the spleen, stomach, and liver meridians, with functions of regulating qi, resolving depression, dispelling turbidity, and harmonizing the middle. It’s mainly used to treat gastric and abdominal distension and pain, dysenteric abdominal pain caused by liver-stomach qi stagnation. Jasmine tea not only has a pleasant aroma but also helps soothe the liver, resolve depression, regulate qi, and relieve pain. It’s commonly used in folk medicine to improve mood and promote digestion. Jasmine can also be used externally to treat conjunctivitis.
Osmanthus (桂花 – Gui Hua)
Osmanthus is warm in nature and acrid in taste, entering the lung and spleen meridians, with functions of warming the lungs, transforming retained fluid, dispersing cold, and relieving pain. It’s commonly used to treat cough and asthma with phlegm-rheum, cold pain in the gastric region and abdomen, and toothache. The aroma of osmanthus can stimulate the appetite and awaken the spleen, often used to make osmanthus tea, osmanthus cake, and other dietary therapies. It also helps improve bad breath and promote appetite. In herbal combinations, osmanthus is often used with ginger, brown sugar, and other warming herbs.
Coltsfoot Flower (款冬花 – Kuan Dong Hua)
Coltsfoot flower is a key herb for moistening the lungs, directing qi downward, stopping cough, and transforming phlegm. It’s warm in nature, acrid and sweet in taste, entering the lung meridian, particularly suitable for various types of cough, whether from cold, heat, deficiency, or excess. Coltsfoot flower has good effects for chronic cough, consumptive cough, and coughing blood. It can be used alone or frequently combined with aster, stemona, and other herbs. The characteristic of coltsfoot flower is that it moistens without drying, both transforming phlegm and stopping cough.
Inula Flower (旋覆花 – Xuan Fu Hua)
Inula flower has functions of directing qi downward, transforming phlegm, descending counterflow, and stopping vomiting. It’s warm in nature, bitter, acrid, and salty in taste, entering the lung, stomach, and large intestine meridians. Inula flower is mainly used to treat cough and asthma with phlegm-rheum, fullness in the chest and diaphragm, vomiting and belching. When used, it usually needs to be wrapped in cloth during decoction to avoid throat irritation from its fine hairs. Inula flower is often combined with hematite, forming “Inula and Hematite Decoction,” a classic formula for treating phlegm-qi interaction and stomach qi ascending counterflow.
Chinese Trumpet Creeper (凌霄花 – Ling Xiao Hua)
Chinese trumpet creeper has functions of invigorating blood, promoting menstruation, cooling blood, and dispelling wind. It’s slightly cold in nature, sweet and sour in taste, entering the liver and pericardium meridians. Chinese trumpet creeper is mainly used to treat menstrual irregularities, amenorrhea, abdominal masses, and skin itching. Its blood-invigorating action is quite strong, so it’s contraindicated in pregnancy. Chinese trumpet creeper can be taken internally or applied externally for skin diseases.
Chinese Rose (月季花 – Yue Ji Hua)
Chinese rose is warm in nature and sweet in taste, entering the liver meridian, with functions of invigorating blood, regulating menstruation, soothing the liver, and resolving depression. It’s mainly used to treat menstrual irregularities, painful menstruation, amenorrhea, and other gynecological conditions. The medicinal properties of Chinese rose are relatively mild, suitable for long-term use to regulate menstruation. It’s often combined with rose, motherwort, and other herbs. Chinese rose tea is also a common health beverage.
Magnolia Flower (辛夷花 – Xin Yi Hua)
Magnolia flower, also called magnolia bud, is a specialized herb for treating nasal diseases. It’s warm in nature and acrid in taste, entering the lung and stomach meridians, with functions of dispersing wind-cold and opening the nasal passages. Magnolia flower is mainly used to treat nasal congestion, nasal sinusitis, and headaches. When used, it usually needs to be wrapped in cloth during decoction to avoid throat irritation from its fine hairs. Magnolia flower is often combined with xanthium fruit, angelica root, and other herbs for enhanced effects.
Cockscomb Flower (雞冠花 – Ji Guan Hua)
Cockscomb flower has functions of astringing to stop bleeding, stopping vaginal discharge, and stopping dysentery. It’s cool in nature, sweet and astringent in taste, entering the liver and large intestine meridians. Cockscomb flower is mainly used to treat uterine bleeding, red and white vaginal discharge, and dysentery. White cockscomb flower is better for stopping vaginal discharge, while red cockscomb flower has stronger hemostatic effects. Cockscomb flower can be used raw or charred; charring enhances its hemostatic action.
Buddleja Flower (密蒙花 – Mi Meng Hua)
Buddleja flower has functions of clearing heat, nourishing the liver, brightening the eyes, and removing corneal opacity. It’s slightly cold in nature and sweet in taste, entering the liver meridian, mainly used to treat red, swollen, painful eyes, excessive tearing with photophobia, and corneal opacity. Buddleja flower is particularly effective for eye diseases caused by liver deficiency with heat, often combined with chrysanthemum, goji berry, and other herbs to enhance eye-brightening effects.
Datura Flower (洋金花 – Yang Jin Hua)
Datura flower, also called angel’s trumpet, has functions of calming asthma, stopping cough, relieving spasms, and stabilizing pain. It’s warm in nature, acrid in taste, toxic, entering the lung and liver meridians. Datura flower is mainly used to treat asthma, epileptic convulsions, and rheumatic pain. Due to its considerable toxicity, dosage must be strictly controlled, and external use is more common. Modern medicine has discovered that datura flower contains alkaloids such as scopolamine, which have antispasmodic and analgesic effects.
Silk Tree Flower (合歡花 – He Huan Hua)
Silk tree flower has functions of resolving depression, calming the spirit, invigorating blood, and reducing swelling. It’s neutral in nature and sweet in taste, entering the heart and liver meridians, mainly used to treat restlessness, depression, insomnia, and lung abscess. Silk tree flower is particularly effective for insomnia and forgetfulness caused by emotional distress, often combined with sour jujube seed, arborvitae seed, and other spirit-calming herbs. Silk tree flower tea is a common beverage for soothing emotions.
Lotus Flower (蓮花 – Lian Hua)
Lotus flower has functions of clearing the heart, cooling blood, relieving summer heat, and stopping bleeding. It’s neutral in nature, bitter and sweet in taste, entering the heart and liver meridians. Lotus flower is mainly used to treat summer heat with vexation and thirst, blood-heat hematemesis, and flooding and spotting. In Chinese medicine, the lotus flower symbolizes purity and is often used to clear heart fire and nourish the heart spirit. All parts of the lotus can be used medicinally, including lotus seeds, lotus plumule, lotus leaves, and lotus root, each with different functions.
Cotton Rose (芙蓉花 – Fu Rong Hua)
Cotton rose has functions of clearing heat, cooling blood, reducing swelling, and expelling pus. It’s slightly cool in nature and bland in taste, entering the lung and liver meridians, mainly used to treat abscesses, carbuncles, sores, and burns. Cotton rose is mostly used externally, either fresh and pounded for external application, or dried and ground into powder for application. It has good effects for various skin infections and inflammation.
Usage Precautions
When using TCM flowers, the following points should be noted: First, they should be used under the guidance of a professional TCM practitioner, as each flower has specific nature, flavor, meridian entry, and indications. Second, attention must be paid to contraindicated combinations, as certain flowers cannot be used with specific herbs. Third, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and children require special caution, and some blood-invigorating flowers are contraindicated in pregnancy. Fourth, people with pollen allergies should avoid using certain flowers. Finally, dosage must be monitored, as even though many flowers have mild properties, excessive use may produce side effects.
Traditional Chinese Medicine emphasizes pattern differentiation and treatment. The same flower may be used differently with different herbal combinations depending on the syndrome. Therefore, when using these medicinal flowers, it’s best to consult a professional TCM practitioner to ensure safe and effective achievement of therapeutic or health maintenance goals.
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