The folk drugs is the basis and sources of commercial medicinal materials. There are more then 1000 kinds commercial medicinal materials, which made up 10% of the total Chinese medicinal natural resources only. While 85% of the resources of medicinal materials are folk drugs and national drugs.

The investigation of local folk drugs was made in many provinces. In Hebei Provinc, 13% of the Chinese medicinal materials is the commercial materials, while others are the folk materials. 65% of Chinese medicincal materials is the folk drugs in Jiangsu. 1171 kinds of Chinese medicinal materials 62% are the folk drugs in Zhejiang, which is the 62% of the total Chinese medicinal materials in the whole province. More than 80% of medicinal materials in Guangxi are folk medicines.

According to the data of the survey on the Chinese medicinal natural resources, most of the new added resources are the folk drugs. The medicinal value and the way of administration of the folk drugs have been changed during long period of medical practice.

The treatment with the folk prescription and proved recipe is a popular form in public. By the survey on natural resources more then 100 thousand kinds of the folk prescriptions and proved recipes were collected according to incomplete data come from sixteen provinces. Based on the result of the survey, Zhong Guo Min Jian Dan Yan Fang (Chinese Folk Prescriptions and Proved Recipes) was compiled after systematising and screening the original data. In this book, 20,000 prescriptions were recorded, which were divided into 13 types, involving more than 200 kinds of diseases.

Since late 1960s Chinese govornment has been paid attention to the development of folk drugs. Chinese patent medicines and other medicinal products were processed with more then 60 kinds of folk drugs according to the incomplete statistics. Fold drugs being used include Agrimonia pilosa (Xianhecao ya), Sarcandra glabra (Caoshanhu), Ardisia japonica (Aidicha), Pimpinella thellungiana (Yanghongshan), Stellera chamaejasme or Euphorbia fischeriana or E. ebracteolata (Shanluobo), Abrus cantoniensis (Jigucao), Sedum sarmentosum (Chuipengcao), and Premna microphylla (Huangmao douhucai). It is proved that the folk drugs showed great protential capacity of exploitation.