Introduction of Bi Cheng Qie:Mountain Spicy Fruit or Fructus Litseae.
✵The article gives records of the herb Mountain Spicy Fruit, its English name, Latin name, property and flavor, its botanical source two plant species, ①.Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers., ②.Piper cubeba L., with a detailed introduction to the botanical features of these two plant species, the growth characteristics, and ecological environment of these two plant species, the features of the herb Mountain Spicy Fruit, its pharmacological actions, medicinal efficacy, and administration guide.
Fructus Litseae(Mountain Spicy Fruit).
Pin Yin Name: Bì Chénɡ Qié.
English Name: Mountain Spicy Fruit,Mountain Spicy Tree Fruit.
Latin Name: Fructus Litseae.
Property and flavor: warm, pungent.
Brief introduction: The herb Fructus Litseae is the dried ripe fruit of Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers., used to warm the stomach for relieving vomiting, epigastric and abdominal pain due to cold. The herb is commonly known as Fructus Litseae, Mountain Spicy Fruit, Bì Chénɡ Qié.
Botanical source: Herbal classic book defined the herb Fructus Litseae (Mountain Spicy Fruit) as the dried ripe fruit of (1). Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers. It is a plant of the Litsea genus, the Lauraceae family, Ranales order plant. Other famous herbal classics defined the herb Fructus Litseae (Mountain Spicy Fruit) as the dried ripe fruit of (1). Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers., or (2). Piper cubeba L. The species Piper cubeba L. is a plant of the Piperaceae family (pepper family), Piperales order. The species Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers. is a plant of the Lauraceae family (laurel family), Laurales order. These 2 commonly used species are introduced:
(1).Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers.
Botanical description: Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers is also known as Laurus cubeba Lour., is commonly known as Shān Jī Jiāo, or Shān Hú Jiāo. Deciduous shrubs or small trees, the tree grows up to 8~10 meters tall. Leaves and fruits have an aroma. The root is conical, ash gray (grayish white); bark is yellowish-green when young, smooth, and turns taupe (dust color) when old. Leaf buds have no scales, and the young branch is thin and long, covered with silky fluff. Leaves are membraneous, alternate; petioles are thin and weak, 1~2 cm long; leaf blades are lanceolate or oblong oval, 4~11 cm long, 1.2~2.5 cm wide, the apex is acuminate, the base is cuneate, entire, the upper surface is dark green, the undersurface is pale green, both surfaces are glabrous, pinnate veins, 6~10 lateral veins on each side, fine and thin, midrib and lateral veins protruding on both surfaces;
Flowers bloom before leaves, dioecious; umbels are solitary or clustered, peduncles are slender, 5~10 mm long, 4 phyllaries (involucral bracts), and has 4~6 flowerlets on it, primrose yellow (pale yellow); 6 tapels (perianth lobes), obovate; 9 fertile stamens, arrange in 3 whorls, glands at the base of the 3rd whorl are stipitate; female flowers have many staminodes, and the ovary is oval (egg-shaped), style is short, stigma is capitate.
Berrylike drupes (drupe fruits) are subglobular (near-spherical), about 4~5 mm in diameter, glabrous, green when it is young, turns black when it is mature, carpopodiums (fruit stalks) are 2~4 mm long, and the apex is slightly thickened. Its flowering period is from February to March, and the fruiting period is from June to August.
Ecological environment: The plant grows on sunny hillsides or mountain slopes, hills, forest edges and bushes, open forests or forest roadsides and water edges, in areas at altitudes of 500~3,200 meters above sea level. The herb is produced in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the Zhujiang River area, the southwest area, and Taiwan of China. It is also distributed in Southeast Asian countries.
Growth characteristics: The plant prefers a moist climate and light, growth is weak if there is a lack of sunlights. It is suitable to choose fields with deep soil layers, acid red soil, yellow soil and mountain brown soil with good drainage for cultivation; you should not choose a low-lying field with waterlogging.
Characters of herbs: Fruits are spheric shape (globular), 4~6 mm in diameter. The surface is tan (chocolate brown) or brownish black, has reticulated wrinkles, and the base often has fruit stalk marks. At the base of the fruit, a small, persistent calyx with 6 teeth is often visible, connected with a slender stalk that is easy to fall off. The mesocarp is easily stripped off; the endocarp is dark red brown, firm and crisp, 1 seed grain, contains 2 hypertrophic cotyledons, rich in oil, the herb has a strong fragrance, slightly similar to old ginger, it tastes spicy and cool. The herb of a better grade has round grains, a strong fragrance, a strong taste, and is rich in oil.
Pharmacological actions: ①.inhibitory effect on Japanese blood sucker; ②.inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus typhi and Bacillus dysenteriae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa; ③.inhibitory effect on skin allergic reactions; ④.anti-hypoxia; ⑤.anti-arrhythmia effects.
Medicinal efficacy: Warm the middle and disperses cold, promoting the circulation of Qi and analgesic, warm the kidney. It is indicated for stomach cold and nausea, cold pain in the epigastric abdomen, borborygmus and diarrhea, cold hernia and abdominal pain, cold dampness stagnation, turbid urine.
Administration of Fructus Litseae (Bì Chénɡ Qié):
Reference:
Administration Guide of Fructus Litseae (Bì Chénɡ Qié)
TCM Books:
①.Internally:1.5~3 grams; ②.Internally:water decoction, 0.5~1 qian (about 1.5~3 grams), or prepare to pill,powder.Externally:prepare to finely ground herb powder,smear teeth or nose; ③.Internally:water decoction, 1~5 grams,or prepared to pill,powder.Externally:proper amount,smear teeth or nose.
(2).Piper cubeba L.
Botanical description: Piper cubeba L is commonly known as Bì Chénɡ Qié. An evergreen climbing vine, it grows to about 6 meters long. Leaves are alternate, elliptic-ovate, or ovate-oblong, the apex is acuminate, the base is rounded or oblique cordate, entire, and both surfaces are smooth and glabrous.
Flowers are unisexual, dioecious, into solitary spikes, about 10 cm long; flowers are small, white, and achlamydeous (having no perianth). Drupe (drupe fruit) is spheric shape (globular), about 5 mm in diameter, and black brown. Its fruiting period is from August to September.
Ecological environment and distribution: The plant was introduced and cultivated in the Zhujiang river area, and Hainan of China, and it is also distributed in the Malay peninsula and other areas of East South Asia.
Characters of herbs: The upper part of the fruit is subglobular (near-spherical), 3~6 mm in diameter. The surface is dark brown to black brown, has reticulated wrinkles, and there is an inconspicuous small protuberant stigma trace at the apex; there are occasional persistent calyxes and thin pedicels at the base, and the pericarp at the base is extended to form a thin and straight pseudocarp stalk, 3~7 mm long, about l mm in diameter, and there are longitudinal wrinkles on the surface. The exocarp and mesocarp are slightly soft, the endocarp is thin and crisp, containing 1 immature seed, 2 cotyledons, yellow-brown, rich in oil, and some are shriveled and wizzled. The herb has a strong fragrance, and it tastes bitter, or slightly spicy and slightly bitter. The herb of a better grade has big grains, is rich in oil, and has a strong fragrance.
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1.Introduction of Bi Cheng Qie:Mountain Spicy Fruit or Fructus Litseae.
✵The article gives records of the herb Mountain Spicy Fruit, its English name, Latin name, property and flavor, its botanical source two plant species, ①.Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers., ②.Piper cubeba L., with a detailed introduction to the botanical features of these two plant species, the growth characteristics, and ecological environment of these two plant species, the features of the herb Mountain Spicy Fruit, its pharmacological actions, medicinal efficacy, and administration guide.
Pin Yin Name: Bì Chénɡ Qié.
Botanical description: Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers is also known as Laurus cubeba Lour., is commonly known as Shān Jī Jiāo, or Shān Hú Jiāo. Deciduous shrubs or small trees, the tree grows up to 8~10 meters tall. Leaves and fruits have an aroma. The root is conical, ash gray (grayish white); bark is yellowish-green when young, smooth, and turns taupe (dust color) when old. Leaf buds have no scales, and the young branch is thin and long, covered with silky fluff. Leaves are membraneous, alternate; petioles are thin and weak, 1~2 cm long; leaf blades are lanceolate or oblong oval, 4~11 cm long, 1.2~2.5 cm wide, the apex is acuminate, the base is cuneate, entire, the upper surface is dark green, the undersurface is pale green, both surfaces are glabrous, pinnate veins, 6~10 lateral veins on each side, fine and thin, midrib and lateral veins protruding on both surfaces;
Ecological environment: The plant grows on sunny hillsides or mountain slopes, hills, forest edges and bushes, open forests or forest roadsides and water edges, in areas at altitudes of 500~3,200 meters above sea level. The herb is produced in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the Zhujiang River area, the southwest area, and Taiwan of China. It is also distributed in Southeast Asian countries.
Botanical description: Piper cubeba L is commonly known as Bì Chénɡ Qié. An evergreen climbing vine, it grows to about 6 meters long. Leaves are alternate, elliptic-ovate, or ovate-oblong, the apex is acuminate, the base is rounded or oblique cordate, entire, and both surfaces are smooth and glabrous.
Characters of herbs: The upper part of the fruit is subglobular (near-spherical), 3~6 mm in diameter. The surface is dark brown to black brown, has reticulated wrinkles, and there is an inconspicuous small protuberant stigma trace at the apex; there are occasional persistent calyxes and thin pedicels at the base, and the pericarp at the base is extended to form a thin and straight pseudocarp stalk, 3~7 mm long, about l mm in diameter, and there are longitudinal wrinkles on the surface. The exocarp and mesocarp are slightly soft, the endocarp is thin and crisp, containing 1 immature seed, 2 cotyledons, yellow-brown, rich in oil, and some are shriveled and wizzled. The herb has a strong fragrance, and it tastes bitter, or slightly spicy and slightly bitter. The herb of a better grade has big grains, is rich in oil, and has a strong fragrance.
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