Witnessed by: TCM
Climbing nightshade (Solanum lyratum), of the Solanaceae family. Soft-hairy climbing perennial of hedge and scrub; native range: hedges and thickets across central and southern China. Globally recognized as bai ying (白英) in Chinese, and climbing nightshade, bittersweet in English. The part used is whole herb. Downy trailing stems with lyre-shaped lobed leaves and small purple star-flowers ripening to red berries, bitter and cooling.
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.
CLIMBING NIGHTSHADE
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- climbing nightshade
- Scientific name
- Solanum lyratum Thunb.
- Family
- Solanaceae
Form
- Part used
- whole herb
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- bitter
Temperature
- TCM
- cool
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Liver · Gallbladder
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- clears heat, resolves toxicity, drains dampness and reduces swelling
Cautions
- Contraindications
- avoid in deficiency-cold patterns and in pregnancy
- Toxicity
- a nightshade with mildly toxic alkaloids; overdose may cause throat irritation, nausea and dizziness
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