The efficacy and function of water willow

Water willow is a very common Chinese medicine in our daily life and is also very important in our daily life. However, some people don’t know much about the effects and functions of water willow, so let us learn about it in detail below.

[Other names] Water hemp, shrimp fork tree (Flora of Hainan), water willow, water bayberry (Illustrated Guide to Higher Plants of China), and fine willow (Selected Chinese Herbal Medicines of Yunnan).

[Source] It is the root of the Euphorbiaceae plant Salix babylonica . Available all year round. Slice and dry.

[Original form] Evergreen small shrub, 1 to 3 meters high. Young branches angular, pubescent. The simple leaves are alternate, linear-oblong or narrowly lanceolate, 8-20 cm long, 12-25 mm wide, acuminate at apex, broadly cuneate at base, entire, glabrous or sparsely pubescent above, slightly pubescent on the veins below, densely pubescent on the midrib, and densely scaled between the veins; petiole 5-11 mm long, pubescent. The flowers are small, dioecious, without petals, and in axillary spikes, 5 to 10 cm long. The male flower has 3 sepals, which are oblong or obovate, with many stamens and branched filaments; the female flower has 5 sepals, which are ovate-lanceolate and covered with short soft hairs; the ovary is nearly spherical, densely covered with close-fitting gray soft hairs, with 3 chambers, and 1 ovule in each chamber; the styles are 3, undivided, with velvety protrusions on the inside. Capsule almond-shaped, densely covered with brown pubescence. Seeds nearly oval. Flowering period is from January to May.

[Habitat distribution] It grows in sandy places beside rivers, in cracks in rocks beside streams, or in thickets on hillsides. Distributed in Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Taiwan and other places.

[Properties and flavors] "Selected Yunnan Chinese Herbal Medicines": "bitter, cold."

【Functions and indications】 ① "Guangxi Medicinal Plant List": "Diuretic. Treats trauma, ulcers, hemorrhoids, gonorrhea, syphilis, bladder stones, and gallbladder stones."

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decoct in water, 3 to 5 qian.

【Excerpt】 《*Dictionary》

[Source] From "Selected Chinese Herbal Medicines of Yunnan".

In general, the effect of water willow is quite significant. It is precisely because water willow has relatively good health-preserving effects that the application of water willow in health-preserving life can be said to be quite high.