Atractylodes lancea

Rhizoma Atractylodis lanceae

Swordlike Atractylodes rhizome

[alias] Rhizoma Atractylodis, Rhizoma Atractylodis and fornix.

[source] the rhizome of Atractylodes lancea (Thunb.) DC.

[plant morphology] perennial herb, 30-60cm high. Stem erect or less branched. Leaves alternate, leathery, ovate lanceolate or elliptic, margin with spiny teeth, upper leaves mostly undivided, sessile; lower leaves often 3-lobed, petiolate or sessile. The inflorescence is terminal, with a ring of leaflike involucre with feather cracks; the involucre is cylindrical, with 6-8 layers of involucres; the flowers are bisexual and unisexual, with many different plants; the bisexual flowers have long pinnate hairs; the Corolla is white, slender and tubular. Achenes covered with yellow white hairs. The flowering period is from August to October, and the fruiting period is from September to October.

It grows in shrub and grass. It is mainly produced in Jiangsu, Hubei, Henan and Anhui.

[harvesting] digging in spring and autumn to remove sediment, dry in the sun and knock off fibrous roots.

[character] the rhizome is irregular, beaded or nodular, cylindrical, slightly curved, occasionally divergent, 3-10cm long and 0.5-2cm in diameter. The surface is gray brown, with wrinkles, transverse curved lines and fibrous root marks, and the top has stem pain. It is solid in quality, with yellowish white or grayish white cross section and most reddish brown oil chambers. It has a special aroma, slightly sweet, pungent and bitter taste.

[chemical constituents] it contains volatile oil, mainly atractylodin, β - eudesmol, hinesol and hydroxyatractylon.

[flavor] warm in nature, pungent and bitter in taste.

[indications] dampness, spleen, wind, cold, eyesight. It is used for abdominal distension, diarrhea, edema, beriberi flaccidity, rheumatic arthralgia, cold, night blindness.

[note]: rhizomes of Atractylodes lancea (DC.) Koidz. Are used as medicine of Atractylodes lancea.