Small Thistle (Xiaoji)
| Pharmaceutical Name: | Herba Cirsii Segeti |
| Botanical Name: | Cirsium Segetum Bge. |
| Common Name: | Small Thistle |
| Source of Earliest Record: | Mingyi Bielu |
| Part Used & Method for Pharmaceutical Preparations: | The aerial parts of the plant and its rhizome are harvested in summer when the thistle is flowering. Then they are cleaned, dried in the sun and cut into pieces. |
| Properties and Taste: | Sweet and cool |
| Meridian: | Heart and liver |
| Functions: | To cool blood and stop bleeding To promote urination |
| Indications and Combinations: | 1. Hemorrhages due to extravasation of blood by heat. *Use with Imperata rhizome (Baimaogen), Cattail pollen (Puhuang) and Biota tops (Cebaiye). 2. Bloody urine, painful urination. *Use with Lotus node (Oujie), Talc (Huashi) and Clematis stem (Mutong) in the formula Xiaoji Yinzi. |
| Dosage: | 10-15 g (30-60 for fresh herb) |