Bletilla rhizome (bai ji)

Bletilla striata

Traditionally attributed effects: stops bleeding in lung and stomach and promotes wound healing.

Safety notes

Not for bleeding from heat with excess, lung abscess or acute external disease. Do not combine with aconite. Coughing up or vomiting blood is an emergency. Traditional use is no proof of effectiveness; if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, taking medication or have a medical condition, consult a doctor or pharmacist.

Preparation

Rhizome. Usually as a decoction, together with other herbs.

Use in traditions

Described in the classical Chinese materia medica, in the group 'herbs that stop bleeding'. The mucilaginous tuber was powdered onto bleeding wounds and taken for coughing up blood. In China the mucilage was also used as glue and paper paste. The orchid is widely grown as an ornamental.

Applications

Use by tradition

How different herbal traditions describe this herb. Amounts are traditional guidelines checked for obvious errors; they are not medical advice. For poisonous plants no dosage is given on purpose.

Chinese materia medica

Nature and taste: bitter, sweet, slightly cold
Meridians: liver, lung, stomach

Attributed effects

Stops bleeding in lungs and stomach, as in stomach ulcers and coughing up blood, and externally promotes the healing of wounds and cracks.

Preparation and amount

Traditional dosage: 3–12 g a day, usually in a decoction. Powdered with sesame oil on cracked, bleeding hands and feet.

Combinations

With donkey-hide gelatin and bai bu for coughing up blood from yin deficiency
With bei mu for lung abscess

Ways to prepare herbs: Decoction Powder and kitchen

Sources

All herbs from Asia →