English
Chinese
“There is a Xi mulberry, and its leaves are difficult. Now that I have seen a gentleman, how happy I am. Now that I have seen a gentleman, why not be happy? When I see a gentleman, there is a secluded leaf in the Xi mulberry. , Deyin Kongjiao. I love you so much. How can I forget it if I hide it in my heart? “Xiaoya Sang” Book of Songs
This poem interweaves the beauty of the mulberry tree with the joy of seeing your lover, and becomes a love poem. Mulberry is the plant that appears most frequently in the Book of Songs. It appears in “Ode” and so on, which shows its profound impact on people’s lives. However, in addition to being used to raise silkworms, the leaves of the mulberry tree are also a common Chinese medicinal material.
According to the 2021 Taiwan Chinese Pharmacopoeia Fourth Edition, mulberry leaves (http://en.whatsintcm.com/dt_articles/%e6%a1%91%e8%91%89/) are the dried leaves of Morus alba L., a plant in the Moraceae family. It is mainly produced in Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Sichuan and other places. It is usually harvested after the first frost and the next morning after the frost has melted. Impurities are removed and dried in the sun for later use. Because it is harvested after frost, it is also called frost mulberry leaf or winter mulberry leaf. In addition, it is recorded in “Baicao Mirror”: “The mulberry leaves must be covered with heavy snow. The next day, the snow is fine and the mulberry leaves are harvested. Thread them and hang them outside to dry in the shade. Its color is mostly green and black, and the wind makes the sound of iron, so it is called iron fan. It is good for picking after the winter solstice. Therefore, it is also called iron fan. In addition, it is also called mulberry leaf, mulberry leaf, mulberry leaf, fairy leaf, etc. Most of its medicinal materials are shrunken and broken, while those that are intact have stalks and leaves that are wide and oval when expanded. 8~15cm long, 7~13cm wide, apex acuminate, base truncate, round or heart-shaped, usually with serrated or blunt serrations on the leaf margins and irregular divisions. The upper surface of the leaves is yellow-green or light yellow, some with small wart-like protrusions, while the lower surface is slightly lighter in color, with prominent veins. The veins are small and reticular, with sparse hairs on the veins, and tufts at the base of the veins, with a brittle texture. The smell is light and slightly bitter. The commonly confused medicinal materials are the leaves of poplar trees. The main way to identify them is to look at the vein islands. The small patches surrounded by small leaf veins are called vein islands. These vein islands are nearly equal in length and diameter. The vein islands of leaves vary in shape and size, and the long and short diameters are very different, so they can be distinguished. In addition, when mulberry leaves are harvested after frost, the surface should be yellow or light yellow. If both sides are green, or have dark black The leaves should be noted.
In addition, according to different clinical uses, honey is used to prepare mulberry leaves, which is called honey mulberry leaves or roasted mulberry leaves. First dilute the refined honey with an appropriate amount of boiling water, then add it to the clean mulberry leaf fragments, mix well, and moisten. Place in a hot pot and stir-fry over low heat until the surface is dark yellow, slightly shiny and not sticky to your hands. Take it out and let it cool for later use. Usually the ratio of mulberry leaf fragments and honey is 4:1. According to the “Compendium of Materia Medica”, “Mulberry leaves are the medicine for hand and foot yangming. It can treat labor fever and cough, improve eyesight and grow hair, and relieve thirst.” Therefore, it was commonly used by Emperor Guangxu and Empress Dowager Cixi of the Qing Dynasty. In addition, the “Mingmu Yanling Pills” and “Mingmu Yanling Ointment” that Cixi also took were mainly made of two medicinal herbs: frost mulberry leaves and chrysanthemums.
In addition, the whole body of the mulberry tree has functions. In addition to the mulberry leaves, its branches are called “mulberry branches” (http://en.whatsintcm.com/dt_articles/%e6%a1%91%e6%9e%9d/) and its fruits are called “mulberries”. , In addition, the bark of the mulberry tree root is “mulberry white bark” (http://en.whatsintcm.com/dt_articles/%e6%a1%91%e7%99%bd%e7%9a%ae/), which are commonly used Chinese medicinal materials. Among them, mulberry white bark has the title of “prolonging life and rolling snow” in Japan, which is named after Japan’s “Japanese Medical Examination of Japanese Medicine”. The white bark of mulberry roots taken are generally tender roots that are more than ten years old, and the inner white bark is peeled off and then dried. For those who have more trouble, they will dig out the root three feet underground, peel off the root bark, and use a copper knife to scrape off the outer layer of thin green and yellow skin, take out the white skin inside, and make sure there is no saliva in the skin because the medicinal materials are not suitable for iron tools. Go, this is where the power of the medicine lies. Later, I will have the opportunity to tell readers what they should pay attention to when purchasing.
Modern pharmacological research shows that mulberry leaves have good effects on improving high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, etc., and have the ability to eliminate germs. They are also very effective in treating dizziness caused by wind-heat colds or hyperactivity of liver yang. Many mulberry trees are planted in Taiwan. Therefore, you can drink fresh mulberry juice and health food made from mulberry leaves everywhere. The competent authorities in Taiwan have also set standards for heavy metals and sulfur dioxide in mulberry leaves, so the public can use them with peace of mind.
Picture provided] Professor Zhang Xianzhe《Illustrated guide to authentic medicinal materials》http://en.whatsintcm.com