What is the difference between Potentilla and Potentilla discolor? Learn to quickly tell the two plants apart
Potentilla discolor is a common Chinese herbal medicine, and market demand for it is relatively large and its price is rather high, but Potentilla is very similar to it, and people often pass one off as the other, so what are the differences between Potentilla and Potentilla discolor?
1. Difference in names
Potentilla discolor gets its name because its leaves are wrapped in thick white woolly hairs, hence the name Potentilla discolor. It also has other names such as Baitouweng, Hamacao and Tianqingdibai. Potentilla, on the other hand, is very abundant in our country and has many varieties, but it has no other aliases.
2. Difference in appearance
Potentilla discolor is a perennial herb in the rose family. Its rhizome is thick and conical, its stem is upright, and its leaves are densely covered with grayish-white woolly hairs. It has odd-pinnate compound leaves, with 8-11 pairs of leaflets at the base of the stem. The terminal leaflet is the largest, while the leaflets on both sides gradually become smaller toward the bottom, and the leaflets are narrowly oblong. Potentilla is a perennial herb of the genus Potentilla in the rose family. Its root is thick and cylindrical, somewhat woody, and its stem is upright or creeping. Its leaflets are mostly 5 in number, and its flowers are usually yellow, though ornamental varieties also have white or red flowers.
3. Difference in effects
The main effects of Potentilla discolor are clearing heat and removing toxicity, stopping bleeding and reducing swelling, and cooling blood and stopping bleeding. It can treat dysentery, diarrhea, leukorrhea, hematemesis, bloody stools, carbuncles and sores, and other conditions. It has a good effect on treating diabetes, and can also lower blood pressure and blood sugar, so demand for it on the market is extremely large. The effects of Potentilla are dispelling wind-dampness and removing toxicity. It can treat dampness-related muscle and bone pain, paralysis, epilepsy, scabies and other conditions, and can also treat dysentery and epilepsy.
4. Difference in price
Because of its effects of lowering blood pressure and blood sugar and its ability to treat diabetes, demand for Potentilla discolor on the market has increased year by year, so its price has also kept rising, from the initial 3-5 yuan per jin to today's 20-30 yuan per jin. Although Potentilla has powerful effects, market supply and demand are stable, so its price is also relatively steady. At present, the market price is about 10 yuan per jin, about one third that of Potentilla discolor.
Potentilla discolor and Potentilla are rather similar, so when buying them you must identify them carefully to avoid being cheated and suffering financial loss.