✵The article records the herb Ash Bark—including its English name, Latin name, Pinyin name, properties and flavor—and its botanical sources: four plant species: (1) Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance, (2) Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh., (3) Fraxinus chinensis Roxb., (4) Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh. It provides a detailed introduction to the botanical features, growth characteristics, and ecological environments of these four species; as well as the macroscopic characteristics of Ash Bark, its pharmacological actions, medicinal efficacy, and administration guidelines.
Cortex Fraxini (Ash Bark)
Pinyin Name: Qín Pí
English Name: Ash Bark
Latin Name:Cortex Fraxini Properties and Flavor: Cold, bitter, astringent
Brief Introduction:Cortex Fraxini is the dried branch bark or trunk bark of Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance, Fraxinus chinensis Roxb., or Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh., used to treat acute dysentery and ocular inflammation. It is commonly known as Cortex Fraxini, Ash Bark, or Qín Pí.
Botanical Source:Cortex Fraxini (Ash Bark) is the dried cortex (bark) of the following species: (1) Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance, (2) Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh., (3) Fraxinus chinensis Roxb., (4) Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh. These are plants of the genus Fraxinus L., family Oleaceae (olive family), order Lamiales. These four commonly used species are described below:
(1) Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance
Botanical Description:Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. rhynchophylla (Hance) Hemsl., or Dà Yè Cén, Huá Qū Liǔ, or Big-Leaf Ash. It is a deciduous large tree reaching 12–15 m in height. The bark is taupe (dust-colored, grayish brown), smooth when young, and becomes fissured with age. Winter buds are broadly ovate, acute at the apex, dark brown to blackish brown, glossy, and densely covered internally with brown, curly pubescence. Current-year branches are primrose yellow (pale yellow), straight and rigid, glabrous; previous-year branches are darkish brown (dust-colored), with scattered lenticels. The rachis of compound leaves bears shallow longitudinal grooves and swollen joints at the points of leaflet attachment; sometimes brown, curved pubescence occurs at these joints. Leaflets are 5–7, coriaceous, broadly ovate, obovate, or ovate-lanceolate, 3–11 cm long and 2–6 cm wide; leaflets on vegetative shoots are broader and larger; terminal leaflets are markedly larger than lateral ones; the lowest pair is smallest; apex is acuminate, sharply pointed, or caudate; base is blunt; margin is irregularly coarsely serrate, with slightly inflexed (incurved) serrations—sometimes undulating—and the lower portion is often subentire; white pubescence occurs along vein axils, becoming glabrous with maturity.
Inflorescences are terminal or axillary panicles at the tips of current-year branches, ~10 cm long. Flower bracts are long-lanceolate, ~5 mm long, and caducous. Pedicels are ~5 mm long. Plants are dioecious or polygamous: male and hermaphroditic flowers occur on separate individuals or sometimes on the same plant. The calyx is shallowly cyathiform (cup-shaped), ~1 mm long; sepals are triangular and glabrous. Corolla is absent. Hermaphroditic flowers possess 2 stamens (~4 mm long); the pistil has a short style and a deeply divaricate stigma. Male flowers bear a reduced calyx; filaments are slender, up to 3 mm long.
Samara is linear; the nut is located at the apex, ~1 cm long, slightly raised; persistent calyx remains attached. Flowering occurs from April to May; fruiting from September to October.
Ecological Environment: Grows on slopes, riverbanks, and roadsides, at elevations below 1,500 m.
Growth Characteristics: Prefers warm, humid climates and full sun. Soil requirements are not stringent: it thrives in yellow soil, yellow-brown soil, and other well-drained soils. As a heliophilous species, it favors deep, fertile, well-drained soils. The root system is well-developed and confers strong cold tolerance, enabling adaptation across a broad temperature range. The mean annual temperature is 5.5–14.4 °C (41.9–57.9 °F); July maximum reaches 47.6 °C (117.7 °F); January minimum may fall below −40 °C (−40 °F). However, its tolerance to atmospheric drought is low. When relative humidity drops to ~45% during July–August and temperatures exceed 38 °C (100.4 °F), leaves yellow and may abscise prematurely. It tolerates soil salinity up to 0.5%.
Characteristics of the Herb: Branch bark occurs in rolled (tubular) or groove-like pieces, 10–60 cm long and 1.5–3 mm thick. Outer surface is ash-gray (grayish white) to taupe brown (grayish brown) or blackish brown, often mottled; surface is flat or slightly rough, bearing grayish-white, dot-like lenticels and fine, oblique wrinkles; branch scars may be present. Inner surface is yellowish white or light brown, smooth. Texture is hard and brittle; fracture is fibrous and yellowish white. Odorless; taste intensely bitter.
Trunk bark is cut into long, strip-like pieces or blocks, 3–6 mm thick. Outer surface is taupe brown (grayish brown), bearing reddish-brown, round or elongated lenticels and furrowed ridges. Texture is firm and hard; fracture is strongly fibrous.
Pharmacological Actions: (1) Anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects; (2) Effects on urine volume and uric acid excretion..
Medicinal efficacy: Clears heat, dries dampness, drains liver fire, and improves vision; also relieves cough and wheezing. Indicated for damp-heat diarrhea and dysentery, morbid leukorrhea, red, swollen, painful eyes; eye sores and nebulae (corneal opacities), and lung-heat-induced cough and wheezing.
Administration of Cortex Fraxini (Qín Pí):
Reference:
Administration Guide of Cortex Fraxini (Qín Pí)
TCM Books:
(1) Internally: 6–12 grams; topical: appropriate amount—wash affected area with aqueous decoction. (2) Internally: water decoction, 1.5–3 qián (≈4.5–9 grams); or prepared as pills or powder. Topical: wash with aqueous decoction. (3) Internally: water decoction, 6–12 grams. Topical: appropriate amount—irrigate eyes with aqueous decoction or instill as an eye drop solution.
(2) Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh.
Botanical Description:Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. acuminata Lingelsh. (F. chinensis Roxb. var. acuminata Lingelsh.), F. caudata J. L. Wu, F. rhynchophylla Hance var. huashanensis J. L. Wu et Z. W. Xie, Jiān Yè Cén, Sharp-leaf Fraxinus, Jiān Yè Bái Là Shù (meaning "pointed-leaf ash tree"), Wěi Yè Cén, and so on. A deciduous small tree, it grows up to 3–8 meters high; bark is gray. Winter buds are large, sharply conical; the outside is densely covered with tawny fuzz and white glandular hairs, and the inside is densely covered with brown curly pilose. Twigs are yellow, glabrous or covered with fine pubescence, gradually becoming glabrous; lenticels are small, protuberant, brown, elliptic, and scattered. Pinnately compound leaves are 12–20 cm long; petioles are 3–5 cm long, the base slightly enlarged; brown curly pubescences grow in tufts on young petioles and soon fall off. Rachis is relatively thin and slightly curved; the upper surface has a narrow groove with deep groove margins; the portion bearing leaflets is articular and covered with fine pilose. There are 3–7 leaflets, hard chartaceous (papery), ovate-lanceolate (rarely obovate-lanceolate), 4.5–9 cm long and 2–4 cm wide; the terminal leaflet is usually larger; the apex is long-acuminate to caudate (tail-pointed); the base is cuneate to blunt; the leaf margin is sharply serrate; the upper surface is glabrous; sometimes pale yellow or white fluff occurs along the sides of the midrib and at the base of the lower surface; the midrib is concave on the upper surface; lateral veins occur in 6–8 pairs; the upper surface is flat; the lower surface is protuberant or raised; veinlets are raised and reticulate; petiolules are 2–3 mm long or subsessile.
Panicles are terminal or axillary, grow at branch tips, 5–8 cm long; peduncles are 1.5–2 cm long; sometimes foliate (leaf-like) bracts occur at the branch base, and the peduncles are covered with sparse, scattered pilose or squarrose hairs; lenticels are scattered and inconspicuous. Male and hermaphroditic flowers are dioecious. The calyx is cyathiform (cotyloid), about 1.5 mm long; calyx teeth have triangular, pointed apices; corolla is absent; the style is short; the stigma is bifurcated.
Samara is spatulate (spoon-shaped), 3–3.5 cm long and about 5 mm wide; the middle-to-upper part is widest; the apex is obtuse; the base tapers; wings are decurrent and extend to the middle of the nut; the nut is about 1.2 cm long, raised, with slender, straight vein margins; the calyx teeth of the persistent calyx are regularly arranged and spaced from the base of the nut. Flowering occurs from April to May; fruiting occurs from July to September.
This species differs from Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance in that branchlets, rachis, and leaflets are hairy on the lower surface; there are 3–7 leaflets; the leaflet apex is long-acuminate to caudate; white pilose often occurs at the base of the midvein on the lower surface; flowers lack a corolla and bloom simultaneously with leaves; the calyx is cyathiform (cotyloid) and spaced from the base of the nut.
Ecological Environment: The tree grows in shaws (holts or mixed woodland) of mountainous areas at altitudes above 1,000 meters above sea level.
(3) Fraxinus chinensis Roxb.
Botanical Description:Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. rotundata Lingelsh. (F. chinensis Roxb. var. rotundata Lingelsh.), Bái Là Shù, White-wax Fraxinus, Bai Xun Mu, Shuǐ Bái Là, and so on. It is a deciduous tree, growing up to 10–12 meters tall; bark is taupe (dust-colored), fissured. Buds are broadly ovate or conical, covered with brown pilose or glandular hairs. Branchlets (twigs) are tawny (yellowish-brown), coarse, glabrous or sparsely covered with long pilose, gradually becoming glabrous; lenticels are small and inconspicuous. Pinnately compound leaves are 15–25 cm long; petioles are 4–6 cm long, the base is not thickened; rachis is straight and upright, the upper surface bearing shallow grooves, sparsely pubescent in the early stage and gradually becoming glabrous; leaflets number 5–7, hard chartaceous (papery), oval (egg-shaped), obovate-oblong to lanceolate, 3–10 cm long and 2–4 cm wide; terminal leaflets are nearly equal in size to lateral ones or slightly larger; apex is sharply pointed to acuminate; base is obtuse to cuneate; leaf margin is regularly serrate; upper surface is glabrous and smooth; lower surface is glabrous or sometimes bears white pilose along the sides of the midrib; midrib is flat on the upper surface; lateral veins occur in 8–10 pairs, bulging on the lower surface; veinlets are raised on both surfaces and conspicuously reticulate; petiolules are 3–5 mm long.
Panicles are terminal or axillary, grow at branch tips, 8–10 cm long; peduncles are 2–4 cm long, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, smooth; lenticels are absent. Flowers are dioecious: male flowers are densely arranged; calyx is small and campanulate (bell-shaped), about 1 mm long; corolla is absent; anthers are nearly equal in length to filaments. Female flowers are solitary; calyx is large and tubular, 2–3 mm long, 4-lobed; style is slender; stigma is bilobed.
Samara is spatulate (spoon-shaped), 3–4 cm long and about 4–6 mm wide; the middle-to-upper part is widest; apex is pointed, often colter-shaped; base tapers gradually; wings are explanate and decurrent to the middle of the nut; nut is cylindrical, about 1.5 cm long; persistent calyx is closely attached to the base of the nut and often splits deeply on one side. Flowering occurs from April to May; fruiting occurs from July to September.
Differences from the former two species: leaflets are oval (egg-shaped), obovate-oblong to lanceolate, with apex pointed to acuminate; calyx is fistuliform (tubular) and closely attached to the base of the nut.
Ecological Environment: The tree grows in shaws (holts or mixed woodland) of mountainous areas at altitudes of 800–1,600 meters above sea level.
Growth Characteristics: This species has a long history of cultivation in China and is widely distributed. It is drought-tolerant and can grow in lightly saline and alkaline soils. Its primary economic uses are to host wax-producing insects and to yield white wax (insect wax). The tree grows rapidly; its wood is soft yet tough, used for weaving handicrafts; bark is used medicinally.
(4) Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh.
Botanical Description:Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh. is also known as Fraxinus fallax Lingelsh. (F. fallax Lingelsh.), Sù Zhù Cén. It is a deciduous small tree, growing up to about 8 meters high; branches are sparse; bark is taupe (dust-colored), fissured; buds are oval (egg-shaped), puce (dark brown), glossy when dried, sometimes exhibiting a lacquer-like luster; branchlets (twigs) are primrose yellow (pale yellow), straight and upright, smooth, with enlarged nodes, glabrous; lenticels are sparse and protuberant; pinnately compound leaves are 6–15 cm long; petioles are thin, 2–5 cm long; rachis is thin and straight, the upper surface bearing shallow grooves, jointed at the points of leaflet attachment, base is thickened, glabrous; leaflets number 3–5, hard chartaceous (papery), ovate-lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, 3.5–8 cm long and 0.8–2 cm wide; apex is long-acuminate; base is broadly cuneate, decurrent into a short stalk, sometimes blunt; leaf margin is serrulate; both surfaces are glabrous, or occasionally fine white pubescence covers the veins on the lower surface; midrib is concave on the upper surface and raised on the lower surface; lateral veins occur in 8–10 pairs; veinlets are extremely minute and inconspicuous; petiolules are 2–3 mm long and glabrous.
Panicles are terminal or axillary and grow at the tip of branches formed in the same year, 8–10 cm or up to 14 cm long; branches are slender and tender, loosely arranged; peduncles are oblate, glabrous, and bear numerous lenticels—particularly conspicuous during the fruiting stage; pedicels are thin, about 3 mm long; the calyx is cyathiform (cotyloid), about 1 mm long, with 4 narrowly triangular calyx teeth having acute apices, each tooth is approximately equal in length to the calyx tube; corolla is primrose yellow (pale yellow), with linear-lanceolate lobes about 2 mm long and 1 mm wide, apex is blunt; male flowers have 2 stamens, slightly longer than the corolla lobes, with oblong anthers and slender, elongated filaments; female flowers are absent.
Samara is oblanceolate, 1.5–2 cm long—or up to 3.5 cm—and 2.5–3 mm wide—or up to 5 mm—with greatest width in the middle to upper part; apex is acute, blunt, or slightly emarginate, bearing a small persistent style; wings are decurrent above the middle of the nut; nut protuberant. Flowering occurs in May; fruiting occurs in September.
Differences between this species and the other three species include: leaflets (lobules) that are sessile or subsessile; leaf blades are ovate-lanceolate to broadly lanceolate; and a slender, straight rachis. Flowers possess a corolla; leaves emerge before flowering; calyx teeth are conspicuous.
Ecological Environment: The tree grows in shaws (i.e., holt or mixed woodland) on hillsides or mountain slopes, at elevations of 1,300–3,200 m above sea level.
✵The article records the herb Ash Bark—including its English name, Latin name, Pinyin name, properties and flavor—and its botanical sources: four plant species: (1) Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance, (2) Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh., (3) Fraxinus chinensis Roxb., (4) Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh. It provides a detailed introduction to the botanical features, growth characteristics, and ecological environments of these four species; as well as the macroscopic characteristics of Ash Bark, its pharmacological actions, medicinal efficacy, and administration guidelines.
Pinyin Name: Qín Pí
Botanical Description: Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. rhynchophylla (Hance) Hemsl., or Dà Yè Cén, Huá Qū Liǔ, or Big-Leaf Ash. It is a deciduous large tree reaching 12–15 m in height. The bark is taupe (dust-colored, grayish brown), smooth when young, and becomes fissured with age. Winter buds are broadly ovate, acute at the apex, dark brown to blackish brown, glossy, and densely covered internally with brown, curly pubescence. Current-year branches are primrose yellow (pale yellow), straight and rigid, glabrous; previous-year branches are darkish brown (dust-colored), with scattered lenticels. The rachis of compound leaves bears shallow longitudinal grooves and swollen joints at the points of leaflet attachment; sometimes brown, curved pubescence occurs at these joints. Leaflets are 5–7, coriaceous, broadly ovate, obovate, or ovate-lanceolate, 3–11 cm long and 2–6 cm wide; leaflets on vegetative shoots are broader and larger; terminal leaflets are markedly larger than lateral ones; the lowest pair is smallest; apex is acuminate, sharply pointed, or caudate; base is blunt; margin is irregularly coarsely serrate, with slightly inflexed (incurved) serrations—sometimes undulating—and the lower portion is often subentire; white pubescence occurs along vein axils, becoming glabrous with maturity.
Ecological Environment: Grows on slopes, riverbanks, and roadsides, at elevations below 1,500 m.
Characteristics of the Herb: Branch bark occurs in rolled (tubular) or groove-like pieces, 10–60 cm long and 1.5–3 mm thick. Outer surface is ash-gray (grayish white) to taupe brown (grayish brown) or blackish brown, often mottled; surface is flat or slightly rough, bearing grayish-white, dot-like lenticels and fine, oblique wrinkles; branch scars may be present. Inner surface is yellowish white or light brown, smooth. Texture is hard and brittle; fracture is fibrous and yellowish white. Odorless; taste intensely bitter.
Botanical Description: Fraxinus szaboana Lingelsh is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. acuminata Lingelsh. (F. chinensis Roxb. var. acuminata Lingelsh.), F. caudata J. L. Wu, F. rhynchophylla Hance var. huashanensis J. L. Wu et Z. W. Xie, Jiān Yè Cén, Sharp-leaf Fraxinus, Jiān Yè Bái Là Shù (meaning "pointed-leaf ash tree"), Wěi Yè Cén, and so on. A deciduous small tree, it grows up to 3–8 meters high; bark is gray. Winter buds are large, sharply conical; the outside is densely covered with tawny fuzz and white glandular hairs, and the inside is densely covered with brown curly pilose. Twigs are yellow, glabrous or covered with fine pubescence, gradually becoming glabrous; lenticels are small, protuberant, brown, elliptic, and scattered. Pinnately compound leaves are 12–20 cm long; petioles are 3–5 cm long, the base slightly enlarged; brown curly pubescences grow in tufts on young petioles and soon fall off. Rachis is relatively thin and slightly curved; the upper surface has a narrow groove with deep groove margins; the portion bearing leaflets is articular and covered with fine pilose. There are 3–7 leaflets, hard chartaceous (papery), ovate-lanceolate (rarely obovate-lanceolate), 4.5–9 cm long and 2–4 cm wide; the terminal leaflet is usually larger; the apex is long-acuminate to caudate (tail-pointed); the base is cuneate to blunt; the leaf margin is sharply serrate; the upper surface is glabrous; sometimes pale yellow or white fluff occurs along the sides of the midrib and at the base of the lower surface; the midrib is concave on the upper surface; lateral veins occur in 6–8 pairs; the upper surface is flat; the lower surface is protuberant or raised; veinlets are raised and reticulate; petiolules are 2–3 mm long or subsessile.
This species differs from Fraxinus rhynchophylla Hance in that branchlets, rachis, and leaflets are hairy on the lower surface; there are 3–7 leaflets; the leaflet apex is long-acuminate to caudate; white pilose often occurs at the base of the midvein on the lower surface; flowers lack a corolla and bloom simultaneously with leaves; the calyx is cyathiform (cotyloid) and spaced from the base of the nut.
Botanical Description: Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. is also known as Fraxinus chinensis Roxb. var. rotundata Lingelsh. (F. chinensis Roxb. var. rotundata Lingelsh.), Bái Là Shù, White-wax Fraxinus, Bai Xun Mu, Shuǐ Bái Là, and so on. It is a deciduous tree, growing up to 10–12 meters tall; bark is taupe (dust-colored), fissured. Buds are broadly ovate or conical, covered with brown pilose or glandular hairs. Branchlets (twigs) are tawny (yellowish-brown), coarse, glabrous or sparsely covered with long pilose, gradually becoming glabrous; lenticels are small and inconspicuous. Pinnately compound leaves are 15–25 cm long; petioles are 4–6 cm long, the base is not thickened; rachis is straight and upright, the upper surface bearing shallow grooves, sparsely pubescent in the early stage and gradually becoming glabrous; leaflets number 5–7, hard chartaceous (papery), oval (egg-shaped), obovate-oblong to lanceolate, 3–10 cm long and 2–4 cm wide; terminal leaflets are nearly equal in size to lateral ones or slightly larger; apex is sharply pointed to acuminate; base is obtuse to cuneate; leaf margin is regularly serrate; upper surface is glabrous and smooth; lower surface is glabrous or sometimes bears white pilose along the sides of the midrib; midrib is flat on the upper surface; lateral veins occur in 8–10 pairs, bulging on the lower surface; veinlets are raised on both surfaces and conspicuously reticulate; petiolules are 3–5 mm long.
Ecological Environment: The tree grows in shaws (holts or mixed woodland) of mountainous areas at altitudes of 800–1,600 meters above sea level.
Botanical Description: Fraxinus stylosa Lingelsh. is also known as Fraxinus fallax Lingelsh. (F. fallax Lingelsh.), Sù Zhù Cén. It is a deciduous small tree, growing up to about 8 meters high; branches are sparse; bark is taupe (dust-colored), fissured; buds are oval (egg-shaped), puce (dark brown), glossy when dried, sometimes exhibiting a lacquer-like luster; branchlets (twigs) are primrose yellow (pale yellow), straight and upright, smooth, with enlarged nodes, glabrous; lenticels are sparse and protuberant; pinnately compound leaves are 6–15 cm long; petioles are thin, 2–5 cm long; rachis is thin and straight, the upper surface bearing shallow grooves, jointed at the points of leaflet attachment, base is thickened, glabrous; leaflets number 3–5, hard chartaceous (papery), ovate-lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, 3.5–8 cm long and 0.8–2 cm wide; apex is long-acuminate; base is broadly cuneate, decurrent into a short stalk, sometimes blunt; leaf margin is serrulate; both surfaces are glabrous, or occasionally fine white pubescence covers the veins on the lower surface; midrib is concave on the upper surface and raised on the lower surface; lateral veins occur in 8–10 pairs; veinlets are extremely minute and inconspicuous; petiolules are 2–3 mm long and glabrous.
Panicles are terminal or axillary and grow at the tip of branches formed in the same year, 8–10 cm or up to 14 cm long; branches are slender and tender, loosely arranged; peduncles are oblate, glabrous, and bear numerous lenticels—particularly conspicuous during the fruiting stage; pedicels are thin, about 3 mm long; the calyx is cyathiform (cotyloid), about 1 mm long, with 4 narrowly triangular calyx teeth having acute apices, each tooth is approximately equal in length to the calyx tube; corolla is primrose yellow (pale yellow), with linear-lanceolate lobes about 2 mm long and 1 mm wide, apex is blunt; male flowers have 2 stamens, slightly longer than the corolla lobes, with oblong anthers and slender, elongated filaments; female flowers are absent.
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