Northern ash bark (QIN PI)
Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance (Fam. Oleaceae)
Pharmaceutical Name:
Cortex Fraxini
Botanical Name:
Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance (Fam. Oleaceae)
Common Name:
Northern ash bark
Part Used:
Branch or stem bark
Cortex Fraxini is produced chiefly in the provinces of Jilin, Liaoning, and Henan. Collected in spring and autumn, the bark is dried in sunlight and used unprepared.
Properties Taste & Meridians:
Bitter in flavor, cold in property, acts on the Liver, Gallbladder, and Large Intestine channels.
Functions:
Clears Pathogenic Heat, improves eyesight by clearing Excess Liver Heat.
Indications & Combinations:
1. For dysentery with bloody stools due to Pathogenic Heat, it is used with Radix Pulsatillae Chinensis (Bai Tou Weng) and Rhizoma Coptidis (Huang Lian) in “The Pulsatillae Decoction” (Bai Tou Weng Tang).
2. For inflammation of the eye and nebula due to Excess Heat in the Liver channel, it is used alone for external application or with Rhizoma Coptidis (Huang Lian) and Herba Lophatheri (Dan Zhu Ye).
Dosage and administration:
3–12 g, decocted in water for an oral dose, or used in pills and powder. Appropriate quantity for external application.
Precautions:
