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Today, Kudzuvine Root is the dry root of the leguminous plant Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi, and edible kudzuvine root is the dry root of the leguminous plant Pueraria thomsonii Benth. The former is commonly called "Kudzu" and the latter is commonly known as "Edible kudzuvine root". Kudzu is widely distributed across the country and is mainly produced in Hunan, Henan, Guangdong, Zhejiang, and Sichuan. Kudzu is cultivated in many lines and is mainly produced in Guangxi, Guangdong and other places, and is also produced in Sichuan and Yunnan.

materia medica Research believes that medicinal Kudzuvine Root is mainly derived from plants of the genus Pueraria in the Fabaceae family. Historical literature has always regarded Pueraria lobata as the authentic product. As for Pueraria thomsonii, it is mainly used as arrowroot powder. Although it can also be used as Kudzuvine Root, the quality is considered deficient. For the former, according to the 2005 edition of Zhongguo Yaodian, Pueraria lobata has become the only source of medicinal Kudzuvine Root, so Pueraria thomsonii will eventually lose its medicinal status except for edible purposes. There is no obvious authenticity of Kudzuvine Root, and it can be cultivated in various places according to the place of origin.

【Variety Review】

Kudzu was an economic crop in ancient times. The Book of Songs often mentions kudzu as a metaphor, such as "He picks kudzu", "Zhaoqiu picks kudzu", "Twink kudzu", etc. The fiber of kudzu can The roots and leaves are used for spinning cloth, and the roots and leaves are used for food. "Book of Zhou" says: "Kudzu, the leaves are used by villains as soup, the materials are used by gentlemen as 絺綌, and they are used as summer clothes for the emperor's court." "Book of Zhou" records that local officials have palms: Pueraria lobata: "Using the resources of the time to conquer the mountains and rivers in the hands of farmers", "Poetry" Zhou Nan﹒ "Ge Qin" says: "The Qin of kudzu is applied to the middle valley, and the leaves are still intact. It is cut and pruned, and it is used as a harvest. It is not cut." It is not said whether the kudzu is a domestic species or a wild one. "poetry. Tang Feng﹒ "Kudzu" says, "Kudzu grows in Mengchu, and weeds grow in the wild." The poem quoted in Volume 8 of "Shuo Yuan" also says: "The continuous kudzu grows in the wilderness. If you get it with good work, you will be rewarded. If you don't get it with good work, it will die in the wild." ” It can be seen that Ge Ge seems to be mainly wild. According to the "Yue Jueshu", "Goujian planted Geu Jian and asked Yue girls to weave Ge cloth and offer it to Fu Chai." It is known that there were domestic varieties in Wuyue at that time, but after the Han Dynasty, it was As the cultivation technology of cotton and linen fiber crops and rice and wheat grain crops matured, the value of kudzu gradually decreased. Therefore, since "Qi Min Yao Shu", almost no agricultural books specifically record the cultivation of kudzu.

The roots of Kudzuvine are mainly used as medicine. Bencao Jing is listed as a medium-grade product. The species used in the past dynasties are complex, and they are mostly plants of the genus Pueraria of the Leguminosae family. Tao Hong-jing has noticed that Kudzuvine Root has edible and medicinal varieties. The difference, "Ji Zhu" says: "Today's Kudzuvine Root is steamed and eaten by everyone. It should be dug deeply into the soil, broken and dried in the sun. If it is still alive, pound the juice to fluid retention to relieve warm disease fever. Its flowers are mixed with adzuki beans. Take the powdered dried flowers with a square-cun spoon, and the fluid retention will not make you drunk. It is the best between Nankang and Luling. It is more fleshy and less tendon, sweet, but it is used for medicinal purposes, so it is deficient here." Although there is no record of plant characteristics, But the general idea is that the Kudzuvine Root grown in Nankang and Luling, Jiangxi is sweet and suitable for eating. "Here" should refer to Maoshan, where Tao Hong-jing is located. It is good for medicine but not suitable for eating. According to the content of flavonoids in the roots of Pueraria lobata, it can reach 12%, which has a beany smell and tastes bad. However, the flavonoids in the roots of Pueraria thomsonii are much lower than those of Pueraria, usually around 2%. As for eating Pueraria edulis Pamp., the content can be as low as 1%. Therefore, medicinal Kudzuvine Root should indeed be based on Pueraria lobata.

Bencao Tujing describes Kudzuvine Root: "It can be found everywhere today, especially in Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Seedlings grow in spring, leading to vines, one or two feet long, purple, with green leaves that look like catalpa leaves, blooming in July The flowers are like pea flowers, not strong. The root shape is as big as an arm, purple and black. Pick the roots at noon on May 5th and expose them to dry. The ones that are deeply buried in the soil are better. Nowadays, many people eat them as powder, which is very beneficial to people. The lower grade is arrowroot powder. "Tiao, that's what it is." This text mistakenly stated that Kudzu "is not strong" and has been criticized by Gangmu. However, judging from the rest of the description, it is basically similar to today's Pueraria plants, "Zhenglei" 》Drawing pictures of Chengzhou Kudzuvine Root and Haizhou Kudzuvine Root. Among them, Chengzhou Kudzuvine Root has a single leaf, which is obviously different from Pueraria with three leaflets, while Haizhou Kudzuvine Root has three leaflets, obvious pods, and tuberous roots. Of course, there is no problem with the genus Pueraria, but it is not necessarily true whether it is Pueraria lobata.

Li Shi-zhen pointed out the difference between wild and domestic varieties of kudzu. Bencao Gangmu Volume 18 says: "There are wild kudzu and domestic kudzu. It spreads long and can be used to treat it. Its roots are purple on the outside and white on the inside, seven or eight feet long. Its leaves have three tips, as long as a maple leaf, with a green face and a light back. Its flowers are in spikes, clustered together, red and purple, and its pods are like small yellow pods and also have hairs. . Its seeds are green, flat like salted plum cores, and have a beany smell when chewed. They are picked in August and September. Benjing The so-called Kudzu is. Su Gong of the Tang Dynasty also said that Kudzu is real, while Su Song of the Song Dynasty called it Flower of Lobed Kudzuvine is not strong, it is wrong." According to its description, it is Pueraria lobata. In addition, the picture of Kudzuvine Root drawn by Jiuhuang Bencao also seems to be this species. (Picture 1) Zhiwu Mingshi Tukao It is also said that there are two types of kudzu: seed and wild. In the two pictures of kudzu, one resembles Pueraria lobata and the other resembles Pueraria thomsonii. (Figure 2, Figure 3)

There are three more points to discuss about Kudzuvine Root.

(1) edible kudzuvine root and arrowroot powder

Although both ancient Pueraria lobata and Pueraria thomsonii can be used as Kudzuvine Root, most documents believe that the domestic species are deficient and wild, and Kudzu is exclusively used as the authentic Kudzuvine Root. When it is occasionally required to use Pueraria thomsonii, the prescription is called "Edible kudzuvine root" is used to indicate the difference. For example, Renzhai Zhizhi Volume 17 loquat leaf uses edible kudzuvine root for one penny. There is a comment that "the one who grows it at home is better".

Kudzuvine Root can be made into kudzu powder, generally the strong powdery kudzu vine is the best. Bencao Yanyi describes the method of making kudzu powder: "take raw kudzu in winter, knead it into powder in water, and make it into a pile. , to be decocted first, let the soup boil, then break it into pieces and add it to the soup. After a long time, the color becomes like glue and its body is very tough. Mix it with honey soup and eat it. It is especially good to rub a little fresh ginger rhizome. It can cure moderate heat and wine thirst. Sickness. Eating too much and urinating can also benefit people. People who are sick, drunk, and thirsty can benefit from it. Those people also cut into boiled tea leaves to treat guests, but it is sweet and useless." Although arrowroot powder can also be used as medicine, " "Kaibao" records its efficacy, but it is mostly used as food. Bai Juyi's poem "Recruiting Taoguang Zen Master": "The fragrant rice is cooked in the white house, and the meat and glutinous rice are not allowed to enter the house. Filter the spring to clear the arrowroot powder, and wash your hands to pick the vine flowers." "Zunsheng" "Eight Notes" contains the food therapy value of arrowroot: "Appetite, relieve polydip."

Zhongguo Yaodian The 2005 edition officially stipulates the source of Kudzuvine Root as kudzu and excludes kudzu. From the literature and modern ingredient research, it should be reasonable. In the future, if kudzu Pueraria thomsonii Without new discoveries in terms of ingredients and medicinal efficacy, it is very likely to be eliminated from the medicinal material market. As for its edible value, it may be further developed.

(2)Kudzu and kudzu

It seems inappropriate for modern botanists to determine the Chinese name of Pueraria lobata as "Kudzu". "Kudzu" or "Yekudzu" has always been regarded as a synonym for poisonous weeds, such as "Huainanzi." "Speaking of Lin Xun" "The viper stings people, and Fu Yi and the pansy will make the harmony more harmonious", Gao You's note: "Combining with the pansy, kudzu, poison." "Lunheng." "Yan Po" says: "There are Croton Fruit and kudzu among the vegetation. When eaten, many people kill people." "Book of Changes Shen Tongqi" says: "If one or two kudzu and kudzu go into the throat, even though Zhou Wen Zhao's , Confucius performs divination, Bian Que performs acupuncture, Wuxian beats the drum, and An Neng sues it." According to Bencao Jing, kudzu is the alias of Gelsemium, which is the most poisonous plant, "Wu Pu materia medica" Said: "Gelsemium chinensis, a poisonous root, a wild kudzu. Shennong Xin, Leigong is poisonous and kills people. It grows in Nanyue Mountain, or Yizhou. The leaves are like kudzu, the red stem is as big as an arrow, and the square root is yellow. Or it grows Picked in Dongye, Kuaiji, in the first month." According to what is said, this kind of Gelsemium is named kudzu because its leaves resemble kudzu.

ReexaminationMengxi Bitan said: "I once asked someone to cut out a plant and look at it. The grass is as creeping as kudzu, the vines are red in color, the joints are as thick as a crane's knees, and the leaves are round and pointed. It is like an apricot leaf and thick, like a persimmon leaf. It has three leaves on one branch, like a rhinoceros bean. The leaves are in between nodes, all facing each other. The flowers are yellow and thin, just like the fennel fruit flowers, which are born between the nodes and leaves. "You" "Yangzazu" says that the flowers are like Cape Jasmine Fruit, slightly larger, which is absurd. The root bark is also red. The Fujian people call it Goumang, also known as kudzu, and the Lingnan people call it Human, and the common people call it graceful jessamine herb. "According to It is said that the kudzu with leaves that resemble kudzu leaves is Toxicodendron radicans (L.) O. Kuntze ssp. Hispidum (Engl.) Gillis, an Anacardiaceae plant. This plant is a climbing shrub that contains mainly toxins. Causes skin membrane reaction, which can be fatal in severe cases.

As for Shen Kuo, he said: "(Kudzu) is a very poisonous thing that is not used for medicinal purposes. It is afraid that it comes from materia medica. It is a different thing and it is not Gelsemium elegans. I see "Qianjin", Waitai Miyao "Kudzu is sometimes used in prescriptions, so be careful and don't use it by its name." is incorrect. A careful analysis of all the prescriptions mentioning kudzu in "Qianjin" has nothing to do with the Kudzuvine Root of the Fabaceae family. However, Zhenglei Bencao is a general medicine for various diseases. Kudzuvine is specially used for ghost, corpse, early abortion, and middle gu, and it must not be used as Kudzuvine Root.

Therefore, it is more appropriate to call Pueraria lobata "Kudzu" or "Kudzu" so as not to be confused with the poisonous "Kudzu".

(3) Gan Ge and Ku Ge

Diannan Bencao The Kudzuvine Root article says: "The sweet taste is Gan Ge, the bitter taste is Ku Kudzu." Volume 15 of "Guizhou Tongzhi" of the Qing Dynasty records that the products of Nanlong Prefecture have edible kudzuvine root. It says: "The edible kudzuvine root spreads all over the fields. The roots can be rolled into powder, and the flowers can be used to digest the bitter taste. There are two kinds of sweet and bitter." Diannan Bencao The editor named this kind of kudzuvine Pueraria edulis, and named it bitter. Pueraria is Pueraria peduncularis Grah., which can be explained in detail.

【Evolution of Authentic】

Bencao Jing Although it is said that Kudzuvine Root "lives in Wenshan Mountains and Valleys", in fact, Pueraria plants are widely distributed regardless of domestic species or wild resources, and are not very authentic. "New Book of Tang" ﹒ The prefectures and counties that sell kudzu powder in "Geographical Records" include Yuezhou Kuaiji County, Wuzhou Dongyang County, Xinzhou, Meizhou Tongyi County, Jianzhou Pu'an County, and Longzhou Yingling County. Bencao Tujing mentions "It is found everywhere today, especially in Jiangsu and Zhejiang." "Pinhui Jingyao" takes Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Nankang, and Luling as the authentic places. Zhiwu Mingshi Tukao said: "There are home growers of Ge, and there are also some "Wild ones", and said, "Nowadays, Lingnan is more important, Wuyue is also a weir, and Kudzuvine is produced in Yanyu, Jiangxi, and Huguang." "Flower Mirror" says: "But the ones that come out of Guangzhong are the best." In short, Kudzuvine Root does not exist It is obviously authentic and can be cultivated in various places according to the place of origin.