A perennial herb growing to 0.75m. Leaves are stipulate, nearly always alternate, and range from bipinnately or palmately compound to simple. Flowers are usually bisexual, actinomorphic to zygomorphic, slightly to strongly perigynous, and commonly in racemes, spikes, or heads; the perianth commonly consists of a calyx and corolla of 5 segments each; androecium consists of commonly 1- many stamens (most commonly 10), distinct or variously united, sometimes some of them reduced to staminodes. Fruit is usually a legume, sometimes a samara, loment, follicle.

Used as liver and kidney tonic, and ophthalmic (seed)

Plants For A Future

The ripe seeds are used in the treatment of kidney diseases, lumbago, spontaneous seminal emissions, loin pain, impotence, profuse leucorrhea, frequent micturation, vertigo and decreased sight.

Contraindicated in patients with constipation.

Jing-Nuan Wu. An Illustrated Chinese Materia Medica. P: 118, Oxford University Press, Inc.2005.