Witnessed by: Western
Sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), of the Droseraceae family. Tiny rosette insectivore, its round leaves fringed with glistening red glandular hairs; native range: acid peat bogs and wet heaths across the northern temperate zone. Globally recognized as round-leaved sundew, youthwort, red rot, moor-grass in English. The part used is whole flowering herb. Small reddish rosettes beaded with sticky dew, acidic and faintly acrid on the tongue.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
SUNDEW
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- sundew
- Scientific name
- Drosera rotundifolia L.
- Family
- Droseraceae
Form
- Part used
- whole flowering herb
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Western
- acrid · sour · bitter
Temperature
- Western
- warm
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- lungs
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Western
- antitussive, antispasmodic, expectorant, demulcent, antimicrobial
Cautions
- Contraindications
- no significant contraindications at therapeutic dose
- Toxicity
- regarded as safe in the doses used; the naphthoquinones are mildly irritant in excess
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