From Ayurveda to Rongoā Māori
Communities around the world learned how plants nourish, care and heal. Here their traditions stand beside present-day use, with respect for every culture.
GrapeFolk magic and herbal magic
BuchuLocal African healing traditions
Indian tobaccoCherokee medicine
Lignum vitaeHerbal knowledge of the Caribbean
Yerba mateKallawaya healing knowledge
CautionOceania · Food · № 173
Acacia spp. (o.a. A. holosericea, A. decurrens)
Roasted wattleseed is a protein- and fibre-rich bushfood. The bark of some species is rich in tannins and was used for wounds and diarrhoea. There is little clinical research.
CautionEurope · Herb · № 86
Plantago major
The leaf is traditionally bruised and applied to insect bites, small wounds and grazes, and taken as tea for coughs. Clinical evidence is limited.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 969
Tsuga heterophylla
A large conifer with a drooping top and short, flat needles. The bark is very rich in tannins; the young needles contain vitamin C.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 587
Larix occidentalis
Traditionally attributed effects: stimulating, prebiotic; improves digestion and gut flora, strengthens the immune system, studied in tumours, helps with middle ear infections in children.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 190
Thuja occidentalis
Traditionally attributed effects: expels worms, astringent, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, stimulates muscles, antiseptic.
CautionAfrica · Herb · № 921
Leonotis leonurus
A shrub of the mint family, two to three metres tall, with orange, tubular flowers in whorls around the square stems. Contains marrubiin and leonurine, as well as labdane compounds. Considered mildly calming; which substance causes the effect is not yet clear.
CautionAfrica · Herb · № 810
Artemisia afra
A bitter, aromatic herb widely used in southern Africa for coughs, colds, fever and flu.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 961
Monarda fistulosa
A mint with lilac flowers and strongly scented leaves, related to Oswego tea. The volatile oil is rich in carvacrol and thymol, which are antiseptic.
CautionEurope · Herb · № 194
Lonicera caprifolium, L. periclymenum
The sweet-scented flowers were used as tea or syrup for coughs. The berries are poisonous. In Chinese medicine the related Japanese honeysuckle (jin yin hua) is used for fever and sore throat.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 156
Prunus serotina
The dried bark was long used in cough syrups to calm irritating coughs. Modern clinical evidence is lacking.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 957
Mirabilis nyctaginea (syn. Allionia nyctaginea)
Related to the marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa), with a thick taproot and small pink flowers that open in the afternoon. Taken internally the root is strongly laxative.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 952
Aralia nudicaulis
A low plant of the ivy family with a long, creeping, aromatic root; related to ginseng and no relative of true sarsaparilla (Smilax).
CautionEurope · Herb · № 838
Thymus serpyllum
An aromatic herb traditionally used for coughs and digestive complaints.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 459
Centratherum anthelminticum
Traditionally attributed effects: expels worms (threadworms), tonic, stomachic, diuretic; for skin diseases and scorpion stings.
CautionSouth America · Herb · № 1005
Achyrocline satureioides (en verwante wollige composieten, o.a. Culcitium canescens)
A woolly, bitter-aromatic plant up to a metre tall with yellow flower heads. Contains flavonoids such as quercetin and luteolin; in the laboratory the extract acts against some viruses, but research in people is lacking.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 128
Morus alba en M. nigra
The leaf (sang ye) is being studied for post-meal blood sugar and is used in Chinese medicine for coughs and fevers; bark, twigs and berries each have their own use too. Evidence is preliminary.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 823
Salvia apiana
An aromatic sage burned in ceremonies by Indigenous peoples of California.
CautionSouth America · Herb · № 878
Smallanthus sonchifolius
A plant of the daisy family with sweet, crunchy tubers full of inulin and fructo-oligosaccharides, which the body barely absorbs. The leaf has been studied for diabetes; evidence in humans is lacking.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 986
Xanthorhiza simplicissima
A low shrub of the buttercup family, one of the few woody species in that family. Root and stem are bright yellow from berberine, a bitter substance also found in goldenseal and barberry that inhibits bacteria and fungi.
CautionSouth America · Food · № 15
Ilex paraguariensis
The leaves contain caffeine, theobromine and polyphenols; the drink is stimulating and dispels tiredness, like coffee or tea. It is a beverage and social drink, not a medicine.
CautionCentral America and the Caribbean · Herb · № 922
Calea ternifolia (syn. Calea zacatechichi)
A shrub of the daisy family with very bitter leaves. Contains caleicine and other sesquiterpene lactones, among others. Said to make sleep light and dreams clear and vivid; in a small study an extract caused a slight change of perception, drowsiness and a short sleep with vivid dreams.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 478
Curcuma zedoaria
Traditionally attributed effects: stimulating, carminative, expectorant, soothing, diuretic, skin-irritant, purifies the blood.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 424
Artemisia maritima
Traditionally attributed effects: antipyretic, mildly laxative, stomachic, tonic, expels worms, stimulates the heart; against worms, compress for inflammation, tumours and foul ulcers.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 150
Actaea racemosa
Mainly sold for menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes. NCCIH reports that study results are mixed and there is not enough evidence that it helps.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 18
Glycyrrhiza glabra
A root with long use in several traditions; high-quality evidence does not support most health claims.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 121
Artemisia annua
Source of artemisinin, the basis of today's standard malaria treatment. Teas or herbal preparations, however, are not a reliable malaria treatment; the WHO advises against them.
CautionCentral America and the Caribbean · Herb · № 850
Annona muricata
A tree with a large, sweet-sour fruit. The leaf is drunk as a calming tea. Claims that soursop cures cancer are unproven.
CautionAsia · Herb · № 363
Nigella sativa
Traditionally attributed effects: aromatic, diuretic and sudorific, promotes bile, stomachic, stimulating, carminative, expels worms, promotes menstruation and milk flow, antibacterial.
CautionEurope · Herb · № 554
Solanum nigrum
Traditionally attributed effects: cleansing, calming, induces sweating and urination, expectorant; for oedema, chronically enlarged liver, jaundice, chronic skin diseases, coughing up blood, haemorrhoids, kidney and bladder inflammation, gonorrhoea, eye diseases; pain-relieving wash.
CautionNorth America · Herb · № 576
Juglans nigra
Traditionally attributed effects: cleansing, laxative, astringent, antibacterial, antiparasitic, antifungal; cleanses and strengthens the large intestine, for skin problems, traveller's diarrhoea, sinusitis, underactive thyroid.
Featured · Central America and the Caribbean · Curanderismo
Salvia divinorum
A sage with large leaves containing salvinorin A, a very potent substance acting on the kappa opioid receptor. Brings short-lived, often intense changes in perception and the feeling of leaving the body.
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43 traditions
How communities built up and passed on their knowledge of plants, region by region.
113 recipes
Soups, teas and dishes in which herbs play a leading role.
146 formulas
The classical Chinese formulas, also listed by condition.