The efficacy and function of Hosta

As a traditional Chinese medicine, Hosta has great medicinal value and can treat many diseases. Let’s take a closer look at it below.

[Other names] Neixiaohua (Haisha Fang), Yuzhi (Chunzhu Jiwen), Baihehua (Pinhui Jingyao), Baihexian (Compendium of Materia Medica), Baicalyx (Qunfangpu), Baiyuzhi, Xiaobajiao (Classification of Herbal Properties), Jinxiaocao (Commonly Used Chinese Herbal Medicines in Shanghai), Huagulian (Handbook of Herbs in Jiangxi).

[Source] It is the flower of the Hosta plant of the Liliaceae family.

[Original form] Perennial herb. With thick rhizomes. The leaves grow at the base and in clusters; the leaves are ovate to heart-ovate, 15 to 25 cm long, 10 to 15 cm wide, and acute at the apex. Green, shiny, with obvious main veins; petiole up to 20 to 30 cm long. The flower stalk emerges from the leaves, is 40 to 65 cm long, longer than the leaves, and often has a leaf-like bract at the top; the flowers are white, bloom at night, are fragrant, and grow upward; there are often membranous ovate bracts at the base of the pedicel; the perianth is funnel-shaped, 6-lobed at the top, the perianth tube at the bottom is very long, and the throat is enlarged; there are 6 stamens, the same length as the perianth; there is 1 pistil, the ovary is sessile, the style is linear, and the stigma is small. The capsule is narrow and long, 4 to 5 cm long. The seeds are black, shiny, and have winged edges. The flowering period is July to August. The fruiting period is from August to September.

[Habitat distribution] Grown in shady and humid areas. It is cultivated in all parts of our country.

【Nature and flavor】 Sweet, cool, poisonous.

【Functions and indications】 Treats sore throat, urinary obstruction, sores and burns.

[Usage and Dosage] For oral use: decoct in water, 0.8 to 1 qian. For external use: mash and apply.

[Additional prescription] ① Treat sore throat: 1 qian of Hosta lily, 5 qian of Isatis root, 5 qian of Scrophularia ningpoensis. Decoction in water. (Shandong Chinese Herbal Medicine Handbook)

[Clinical application] Treatment of burns: Take 1 jin of Hosta flowers and soak it in 4 jin of sesame oil for 2 months. Take the oil and set aside. When using, first clean the wound, suck out the contents of the blister, then apply the medicine externally with a sterilized cotton ball, once every 1 to 2 days. Expose the affected area in hot weather and wrap it with gauze soaked in medicine in cold weather. More than 100 cases have been treated, and the pain usually stops in about 5 minutes. Ⅰ° burns can be cured with 1 to 2 doses of medication, while Ⅱ and Ⅲ° burns require 5 to 10 doses of medication continuously.

【Excerpt】 《*Dictionary》

[Source] From "Pinhui Jingyao": The seedling of Hosta is more than one foot tall, with light green leaves at the end of the stem. The stem branches out in June and July, with several stamens two or three inches long, fragrant and white, shaped like a crown and hairpin, hence the name Hosta. In autumn, the pods have four petals like iris seeds, and the fruit is like elm seeds but narrow and long.

Above we introduced what hosta is. We know that hosta can not only be used to treat diseases but also has good health care effects, so we must be good at using hosta to protect our health.