Universal Guidelines for Herbal Medicine Collection

Imagine you are downsizing a 9,000 sq ft home; a home you have lived in for decades and that has had space for every imaginable souvenir or sentimental favor. Who would you think of when you come across the shockingly extensive and rare collection of Advanced Chinese Medical Texts that you picked up when traveling in Asia twenty years ago? (Me, I hope.) If you live closer to China than to Washington, I’ll understand if you find a local home for them but if you can, please choose some lucky acupuncturist to unload your treasure on. As my world has it, this non-rhetorical mover and shaker is a patient of mine……and this time, I am the lucky acupuncturist.

old school herb shake down

I am slowly making my way through each gem of text. Today, when looking for ideas for a new case of stubborn hotflashes, I came across some basic wildcrafting guidelines and the practical reasoning that determines the appropriate times of year to harvest different parts of plants. These are basic principles that are standard to most herbal practices but I realized that we don’t have anything on the site that addresses this topic. Because of the sweetness of the translation, and the discussion’s focus on foreign herbs it may make a fun read for even the most seasoned herbalist. For those reasons, I am going to leave the entire excerpt in tact.

All of the photos are from my 2001 trip to China where I had the opportunity to spend a few months as an intern in the Herbal Medicine Department of Chengdu University Hospital. All of the herbal names are in Latin. If you are curious to know the Chinese Pin Yin, common names or medicinal uses of a specific herb are just ask!  There is a follow-up section on means of herb preparation that I will post later.  Here goes! (time to get my secretary on!)

Zingiber Officinale, Sheng Jiang....yup it's spicy bike o' GINGER!!

*excerpt from Advanced Textbook on Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pharmacology Vol II

State Administration of TCM, New World Press, Beijing China, 1995

The Collection

All the parts of the plants for medical use, such as their root, stem, leaf, flower, fruit and seed have different periods of maturation; and the content of effective effects and properties of the mature and immature parts of the plants differs. Therefore, collecting them at the right time has a very important bearing on the therapeutic results. Only when the drugs are collected at the right season when they contain the most effective ingredients can they produce the desired therapeutic results. The following is a general account of the right periods of collection of medicinal herbs:

Angelica Sinensis, Dang Gui

(1) Roots

It is advisable to collect the roots in early spring before the plants put forth buds or sprout, or in late autumn when the aerial part of the plants begin to wither. This is because during these periods the plants are dormant and their nutrients are mostly stored in the roots which contain more effective ingredients and are of good quality. Take Radix Puerarieae for example. The root collected in late autumn is solid, starchy and of good quality, while that collected in the late spring and early summer contains less starch and is more fibrous and of poor quality. But there are exceptions. Take Radix Pseudostellaria, Rhizome Pinellia and Rhizome Corydalis for example. Their aerial parts wither in the summer and it is better to collect them then.

(2) Barks of Trees and Roots

It is advisable to collect tree barks in the late spring or early summer when the plants are growing luxuriantly with ample sap. for their barks collected at this time contain more nutrients and can be easily peeled off from the woody parts. As for the barks of the roots, the collection should be conducted in autumn.  For instance, Cortex Moutan Radicis collected in autumn is starchy and of good quality.

(3) Whole Plants, Stems, Branches, and Leaves

Most are collected when the plants are growing luxuriantly with branches and leaves or in full bloom. For perennial plants, the aerial parts are cut and collected, for plants with weak and tender stems and branches, or those short and small ones and plants that must be used together with the roots, the whole plant including the root is dug up: and the leaves of some plants are collected in autumn and winter, such as Folium Mori and Folium Eriobotryae.

(4) Flowers

It is advisable to collect flowers when they are in buds or just beginning to bloom. so as to avoid the dispersion of their fragrance and the loss of petals. For instance, Flos Lonicerae, Flos Sophorae and Flos Chrysnathemi are collected during this period. Flos Carthami is collected at several separate occasions because it blooms at different times. It would be best to collect the flowers in fine weather so that they can be dried in the sun or by airing.

Fructus Zizyphi Jujubae, Da Zao

(5) Fruits

Generally speaking, fruits should be collected when they are ripe. Some, however, are collected before they are ripe, such as Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae Viride and Fructus Aurantii Immaturus; and some are collected when they are old such as Fructus Trichosnathis and Terinerus Luffae Fructus. Juicy fruits, like berries, which get rotten easily, should be collected in due time and dried afterwords. One example is Fructus Lycii.

(6) Seeds and Kernels

Seeds and kernels, such as Semen Raphani, Semen Armeniacae Amarum and Semen Thrichosnathis are collected when they are completely mature and aged. Fruits that would crack and lose their seeds are collected on sunny days as soon as they are ripe but have not yet cracked.

There will be more to come soon on herbal preparation methods and practices. In the meantime, remember, any small action we take to connect to nature builds a bridge that will lead to endless discovery. By touching the grass, planting a flower, picking a fruit, smelling a spice…..you will make a friend for life.

Simple joy, lasting love,  EKG

*lay in fields with nothing and find it all; big sky, big dreams*