Honeysuckle Dew is the name of a traditional Chinese medicine. It is a distillate made from the flower buds of plants in the genus Lonicera of the Caprifoliaceae family, including Lonicera japonica Thunb., L. hypoglauca Miq., L. confusa DC., or L. dasystyla Rehd. It has the effects of clearing heat, relieving summer heat, and detoxifying.It is primarily used to treat summer heat-induced restlessness and thirst, nausea and vomiting, heat-toxin sores and boils, and heat rash.
Honeysuckle Dew
Honeysuckle Dew is the name of a traditional Chinese medicine. It is a distillate made from the flower buds of plants in the genus Lonicera of the Caprifoliaceae family, including Lonicera japonica Thunb., L. hypoglauca Miq., L. confusa DC., or L. dasystyla Rehd. It has the effects of clearing heat, relieving summer heat, and detoxifying.It is primarily used to treat summer heat-induced restlessness and thirst, nausea and vomiting, heat-toxin sores and boils, and heat rash.
Chinese Name : 金银花露
Aliases : Golden-Silver Dew, Honeysuckle Flower Dew
Authentic Producing Area : Mainly produced in Henan and Shandong
Nature, Flavor & Meridian Tropism : Sweet in taste, cold in nature; enters the Heart, Spleen, and Stomach meridians
Benefits & Efficacy
Benefits
Clears heat, relieves summer heat, and detoxifies.
Indications
Mainly used to treat summer heat-induced restlessness and thirst, nausea and vomiting, heat-toxin sores and boils, and heat rash.
Usage and Dosage
1. Internal Use: Simmer in a double boiler until warm and drink; 60–120 g; or mix with water and drink as a tea substitute. 2. External Use: Apply topically.
Precautions
1. Maintain a light diet while taking this medicine. 2. Avoid taking tonic Chinese patent medicines concurrently with this product. 3. Drug interactions may occur when used with other medications; consult a physician or pharmacist for details.
Chemical Constituents
Honeysuckle Dew is a distillate of honeysuckle; therefore, its chemical composition consists primarily of the plant’s volatile components, including benzyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate,methyl 14-methylpentadecanoate, linalool, geranyl acetone, nerol, 2,4-di-tert-butylphenol, and dibenzothiophene, among 62 other components; it also contains some active ingredients from honeysuckle, such as chlorogenic acid.
Pharmacological Actions
Honeysuckle Dew possesses pharmacological effects such as antibacterial, sedative-hypnotic, and anti-inflammatory properties.
Relevant Discussions
1. *Jin’s Prescriptions*: “Specifically treats fetal toxins, as well as toxins from various sores, smallpox, and heat-related toxins.”
2. *Guanghe Prescriptions*: “Clears fire and detoxifies; it can also reduce the severity of smallpox.” (Formulas 1 and 2 are cited from *Supplements to the Compendium of Materia Medica*)
3. *Supplements to the Compendium of Materia Medica*: “It stimulates the appetite, soothes the stomach, detoxifies, and clears heat. During the summer months, it can be used as a substitute for tea; when given to young children, it prevents skin infections. It is particularly effective at dispelling summer heat.”
4. *The Great Dictionary of Chinese Medicine*: “Nourishes the blood and quenches thirst. Treats damp-heat rashes and smallpox, boils and abscesses, syphilis, and bloody dysentery.”
Applications
Clinical Applications
1. Boils, swellings, and carbuncles: It can relieve pain, reduce swelling, and clear heat toxins. When combined with the Five-Flavor Disinfecting Decoction, it produces a synergistic effect.
2. For external invasion by wind-heat, the early stages of warm diseases, and situations where heat has just entered the营血 (Ying-blood) level, this formula can disperse pathogenic factors through its aromatic properties and clear heat toxins from the lungs and stomach.
3. For heat-toxin bloody dysentery, taking both the raw and charred forms of this herb together yields better results. It is also effective for heat-induced restlessness and thirst, sore throat, heat boils in children, and heat rash.
Notes
Patients requiring treatment with traditional Chinese medicine should first consult a licensed TCM hospital, where a TCM practitioner will conduct a professional diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate herbal formula.
Processing & Preparation
Harvesting & Processing
In late spring or early summer, after the morning dew has dried, harvest the buds about to bloom or newly opened flowers, and promptly sun-dry or dry them at a low temperature.
Processing Methods
1. Take 62.5 grams of honeysuckle and extract it using steam distillation, collecting approximately 1,000 milliliters of distillate.Then, adjust the pH of the distillate to approximately 4.5, add an appropriate amount of flavoring agent, filter it to prepare 1,000 milliliters of solution, and proceed with bottling and sterilization. This process yields Honeysuckle Essence in bottles of 60 milliliters, 100 milliliters, 150 milliliters, and 340 milliliters (sucrose-free).
2. Take 100 grams of honeysuckle and collect 1,400 milliliters of distillate using steam distillation.Then, add an appropriate amount of simple syrup to adjust the volume of the solution to 1,600 milliliters, followed by filtration, filling, and sterilization. Alternatively, dissolve 140 grams of sucrose and 3.2 grams of sodium benzoate in water, add the mixture to the distillate, and top up with water to a total volume of 1,600 milliliters, stirring thoroughly.Next, add an appropriate amount of citric acid to adjust the pH to between 4.0 and 4.5. After mixing thoroughly once more, filter, sterilize, and bottle the solution to produce Honeysuckle Essence in bottles of 60 mL, 100 mL, 150 mL, and 340 mL (containing sucrose).
3. Take 100 grams of honeysuckle and use steam distillation to collect 1,600 milliliters of distillate. Then add 30 grams of sucrose to the distillate, mix thoroughly, and filter.Next, fill and seal the filtrate, and finally sterilize it to produce honeysuckle essence in bottles of 100 ml and 300 ml (containing sucrose).
Storage Methods
Seal and store in a cool place.
Crude Drug Identification
Properties of Crude Drugs
1. Honeysuckle: The flower buds are slender and club-shaped, thicker at the top and thinner at the bottom, slightly curved, 2–3 cm long, with a diameter of about 3 mm at the top and about 1.5 mm at the bottom. The surface is yellowish-white or greenish-white (the color deepens with prolonged storage) and densely covered with short, soft hairs. Leaf-like bracts are occasionally present. The calyx is green, 5-lobed at the apex, with hairy lobes approximately 2 mm long.When open, the corolla is tubular with a bilabiate apex; there are 5 stamens attached to the tube wall, yellow in color; there is 1 pistil, and the ovary is glabrous. It has a fresh, fragrant aroma and a mild, slightly bitter taste.
2. Red-gland Honeysuckle: 2.5–4.5 cm long, 0.8–2 mm in diameter.Surface yellowish-white to yellowish-brown, glabrous or sparsely hairy. Calyx tube glabrous, 5-lobed at the apex; lobes long-triangular, hairy. In open flowers, the lower lip of the corolla is reflexed; style glabrous.
3. Mountain Honeysuckle: 1.6–3.5 cm long, 0.5–2 mm in diameter. Calyx tube and corolla densely covered with grayish-white hairs; ovary hairy.
4. Hairy-styled Honeysuckle: 2.5–4 cm long, 1–2.5 mm in diameter. The surface is pale yellow with a slight purplish tinge and glabrous. The calyx lobes are short-triangular. In open flowers, the upper lip of the corolla is often irregular, and the lower part of the style is usually densely covered with long, soft hairs.
Properties of Processed Slices
This product is a colorless to pale yellow transparent liquid with an aromatic odor and a slightly sweet or sweet taste.
Botanical Information
Botanical Classification
Plants of the genus Lonicera in the family Caprifoliaceae, including Lonicera japonica, Lonicera rubroglabra, mountain honeysuckle, or Lonicera pilosa.
Morphological Characteristics
Honeysuckle is a perennial, semi-evergreen shrub with twining and creeping stems. The twigs are slender, hollow, and brown to reddish-brown in color. The ovate leaves are opposite, and both the branches and leaves are densely covered with soft hairs and glandular hairs.It blooms in summer; the bracts are leaf-like, and the labiate flowers have a faint fragrance, with soft hairs and glandular hairs on the outside. Both the stamens and the style extend beyond the corolla, and the flowers grow in pairs in the leaf axils. The flowers are initially white and gradually turn yellow, creating a contrast of yellow and white. The fruit is a spherical berry that turns black when ripe.Young branches are pure reddish-brown, densely covered with yellowish-brown, spreading, stiff, rough hairs, glandular hairs, and short soft hairs; the lower part is often glabrous.Leaves are papery, ovate to oblong-ovate, sometimes ovate-lanceolate, rarely rounded-ovate or obovate, very rarely with 1 to several blunt notches; 3–5 cm long; apex acute or acuminate, rarely obtuse, rounded, or slightly emarginate; base rounded or nearly cordate, with rough marginal hairs; upper surface dark green,the underside pale green; leaves on the upper part of the twig are usually densely covered with short, rough hairs on both surfaces, while lower leaves are often smooth and glabrous, with the underside more or less bluish-gray; petioles 4–8 mm long, densely covered with short soft hairs.The inflorescence stalk is usually solitary, arising from the axils of upper leaves on the twig; it is as long as or slightly shorter than the petiole, but in lower positions it may reach 2–4 cm in length, densely covered with short soft hairs intermixed with glandular hairs; the bracts are large, leaf-like, ovate to elliptic, up to 2–3 cm long, with short soft hairs on both surfaces or sometimes nearly glabrous;the small bracts are rounded or truncate at the apex, about 1 mm long, constituting 1/2–4/5 of the calyx tube, with short, rough hairs and glandular hairs; the calyx tube is about 2 mm long, glabrous; the calyx teeth are ovate-triangular or long-triangular, with a pointed apex and long hairs, and are densely hairy on the outer surface and margins;Corolla white, sometimes with a faint reddish tinge on the sun-exposed side at the base, later turning yellow, (2–)3–4.5(–6) cm long, labial; tube slightly longer than the labellum, rarely nearly equal in length, externally covered with more or less decumbent, spreading or semi-spreading rough hairs and long glandular hairs; upper lip lobe blunt at the apex; lower lip strap-shaped and reflexed;Both the stamens and the style extend beyond the corolla. The flower bud is club-shaped, thicker at the top and tapering toward the base. The exterior is yellowish-white or pale green, densely covered with short soft hairs. The calyx is minute, yellowish-green, lobed at the apex, with the margins of the lobes hairy. The open flower is tubular, with a bilabiate apex; there are 5 stamens attached to the tube wall, yellow in color; and 1 pistil with a glabrous ovary.It has a fresh, fragrant aroma and a mild, slightly bitter taste. The best quality specimens are unopened flower buds that are yellowish-white or greenish-white in color and free of any stems, leaves, or impurities. The fruit is round, 6–7 mm in diameter, and glossy blue-black when ripe; the seeds are ovoid or elliptical, brown, about 3 mm long, with a prominent ridge in the middle and shallow transverse grooves on both sides.Flowering period: April–June (often blooms in autumn as well); fruit ripening period: October–November.
Distribution Area
Honeysuckle is distributed throughout East China, Central and South China, Southwest China, as well as in Hebei, Shanxi, Liaoning, Shaanxi, and Gansu.
Growth Habits
Honeysuckle prefers sunny, mild, and humid environments; it is hardy, highly adaptable, cold-tolerant, and drought-tolerant, but grows poorly in shaded areas.
Propagation Methods
Propagation is by seed and cuttings.
Cultivation Techniques
1. Propagation by seed: Sow in April. Soak the seeds in warm water (35–40°C) for 24 hours, then remove and mix with 2–3 times their volume of moist sand to stimulate germination. Sow when about 30% of the seeds have cracked open.Sow in furrows on raised beds with a row spacing of 21–22 cm, cover with 1 cm of soil, and spray water once every two days; seedlings will emerge in about 10 days. Transplant in late fall or the following spring, using approximately 15 kg of seeds per hectare.
2. Propagation by Cuttings: This is generally carried out during the rainy season. During overcast and rainy weather in summer and fall, select healthy, pest- and disease-free 1- to 2-year-old branches, cut them into 30–35 cm lengths, remove the lower leaves, and use them as cuttings immediately after cutting.In the prepared soil, dig holes with a row spacing of 1.6 m and a plant spacing of 1.5 m. The holes should be 16–18 cm deep. Place 5–6 cuttings per hole, arranging them in a scattered, diagonal pattern and burying them in the soil so that approximately 7–10 cm remains above ground. Fill the holes with soil and firm it down (sandy soil with good air and water permeability is best).
Pest and Disease Control
1. Brown Spot Disease: Remove diseased leaves, then spray with Bordeaux mixture at a ratio of 1:1.5:200 once every 7–10 days for 2–3 consecutive applications;Alternatively, use a 500-fold dilution of 65% zinc mancozeb or a 1,000–1,500-fold dilution of thiophanate-methyl, spraying once every 7 days for 2–3 consecutive applications.
2. Powdery mildew: Clear the garden of diseased and dead plants; during the outbreak period, spray with a 1,000-fold dilution of 50% thiophanate-methyl or BO-10 biological control agent.
3. Aphids: Spray with a 1,000–1,500-fold dilution of 40% malathion or a 1,000–1,500-fold dilution of aphid-control agent (aphid-killer), repeating multiple times until the infestation is eradicated.
4. Geometer Moths: After spring arrives, dig up the soil within 1 meter of the plants to destroy pupae. At the early stage of larval emergence, spray a 400–600-fold dilution of 2.5% rotenone emulsifiable concentrate; alternatively, use pesticides such as DDVP or diazinon to control them, but discontinue spraying during the flowering period.
5. Anthracnose: Remove and burn all diseased plant debris and leaves; before transplanting, soak seeds in a 1:1:150–200 Bordeaux mixture for 5–10 minutes; during the disease outbreak period, spray with a 500-fold dilution of 65% zinc mancozeb or an 800–1,000-fold dilution of 50% thiram.
6.Longhorn Beetles: When adults emerge from the soil, douse the planting mounds with a 1,000-fold dilution of 80% diazinon. During peak egg-laying, spray a 800–1,000-fold dilution of 90% diazinon crystals once every 7–10 days; prune and burn any infested branches upon discovery; if borer holes are present, pack them with cotton soaked in undiluted 80% dichlorvos and seal with soil to kill the larvae.