The Resources of Chinese Materia Medica in North Regions of China

This region includes the south Liaoning Province, the central and south Hebei Province, Beijing, Tianjin, the central and south Shanxi Province, Shandong Province, the north and central Shaanxi Province, as well as small portions of the mid-south Ningxia Autonomic Region, the southeast Gansu Province, Qinghai Province, Henan Province, Anhui Province and Jiangsu Province. In physiognomy, the northwest part of the region is high and the southeast part is low. The summer is hot and the winter is cold with most parts lying in the warm temperate zone. The plant species are mainly flora of North China region. The tree coverage is characterized by the coniferous forest, such as pines and cypresses, and the broad-leaf forest, such as oaks.

There are over 1,800 kinds of Chinese materia medica, among which are about 1,500 plants, 250 animals and 30 minerals. The wild resources in rich reserve include Ziziphus jujuba var. spinosa (Suancaoren), Atractylodes lancea var. chinensis (Bei Cangzhu), Polygala tenuifolia (Yuanzhi), Bupeurum chinense (Bei Chaihu), Scutellaria baicalensis (Huangqin), Anemarrhena asphodeloides (Zhimu), Forsythia suspensa (Lianqiao), Pueraria lobata (Gegen), Platycladus orientalis (Baiziren), Stellaria dichotoma var. lanceolata (Yinchaihu), Polygonatum odoratum (Yuzhu), etc. The garden-grown medicinal plants with big yield are Rehmannia glutinosa (Dihuang), Armeniaca vulgaris (Xingren), Lonicera japonica (Jinyinhua), Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus (Huangqi), Codonopsis pilosula (Dangshen), Dioscorea opposita (Shanyao), Achyranthes bidentata (Huainiuxi), Isatis indigotica (Banlangen), Crataegus pinnatifida var. major (Shanzha), Aster tataricus (Ziyuan), Dendranthema morifolium (Juhua), Trichosanthes kirilowii (Gualou), Glehnia littoralis (Bei Shashen) as well as Panax quinquefolium (planted Xiyangshen). The main animal drug is scorpion. The major drugs of mineral are Fossilia Ossis Mastodi (Longgu)，magnetite (Cishi)，Ochra Haematitum (Zheshi)，Smithsonite Calamina (Luganshi) and Actinolite (Yangqishi).