Coptis chinensis SEEDS

LATIN NAME: Coptis chinensis

COMMON NAME: Chinese Goldthread

The goldthread raises its small, pale-green flowers above the low tufts of the shiny leaves, and the slender, yellow-gold roots thread through the moist soil. The low, clump-forming, evergreen perennial plant carries the divided, shiny, dark-green leaves of the three leaflets and the small, greenish-white or pale-green flowers in the loose heads through the early spring, one of the fine, quiet sights of the moist woodland, with the slender, golden-yellow roots threading through the ground. The roots have a very long record in the old practice of the warm East, and the plant is a fine, historic presence of the moist woodland. It is a plant of the open, lightly shaded, deep, moist, well-drained ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The goldthread is a historic subject of the plant science, and the golden roots keep showing up in the work on the woodland perennials. The chemistry of the slender, golden-yellow roots, which carry the bright, bitter compounds of the old practice, has been studied closely, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the woodland perennials, the bitter-rooted plants and the members of the buttercup family. The shiny, divided leaves and the clump-forming habit have also made it a fine study plant, and the goldthread is a regular subject of the work on the golden roots of the cool world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The goldthread is a fine, quiet plant of the moist woodland and the study collection. The slender, golden-yellow roots have a very long record in the old practice of the warm East, while the small, greenish-white or pale-green flowers open through the early spring, one of the fine, quiet sights of the moist woodland, and the divided, shiny, dark-green leaves give the low, neat tufts of the plant. It is one of the fine choices for the moist woodland, the shade garden and the study collection, and it has been written about in the botanical and the horticultural papers for the golden roots and the very long record. It is a fine, quiet plant of the open, lightly shaded, deep, moist, well-drained garden.

Give the young plants the moist shade, and the golden roots will thread through in the years to come.

To grow the goldthread from seed, sow the small, brown seeds over the surface of the tray of fine, gritty soil, without covering them, keep the tray in a bright, open spot and water gently, then set the young plants out in the moist shade. The seedlings come up in their own good time and grow on steadily. With the light shade and the deep, moist, well-drained ground, the golden roots will thread through the years.

Chemical constituents

The rhizomes of Coptis chinensis are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine and serve as a source for the isoquinoline alkaloids berberine, palmatine, hydrastine, and coptisine among others.
Traditional uses

Coptis chinensis is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. In Chinese medicine it clears heat and drys dampness, 'purging fire to eliminate toxin'.