Witnessed by: TCM
Cattail (Typha angustifolia), of the Typhaceae family. Tall marsh reed with a brown cylindrical flower spike; native range: marshes across China and the temperate northern hemisphere. Globally recognized as pu huang (蒲黄) in Chinese, and cattail pollen, bulrush pollen, narrowleaf cattail in English. The part used is pollen. Fine bright-yellow pollen, light and dusty, faintly sweet.
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.
CATTAIL
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- cattail
- Scientific name
- Typha angustifolia L.
- Family
- Typhaceae
Form
- Part used
- pollen
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- sweet
Temperature
- TCM
- neutral
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Liver · Pericardium
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- stops bleeding, invigorates the blood and dispels stasis, and promotes urination
Cautions
- Contraindications
- contraindicated in pregnancy; use only with confirmed blood stasis or bleeding
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