Agathosma betulina Origin- Africa

Introduction

Buchu is a small, green, woody plant found in western South Africa. In several reports of the late nineteenth century, buchu was described as "about the size of a hedgehog." The leaves have an incredibly pungent aroma that increases as they are dried and this smell is strong enough to impart itself within anything in the immediate vicinity.

Constituents

Diosphenol (the antimicrobial component), mucilages (the soothing component), diosmin, pugelone.

Parts Used

Dried leaf and small flowers.

Typical Preparations

Teas and tinctures. Often combined with couchgrass, corn silk, cranberry, cleavers, dandelion, goldenrod, parsley, and/or uva ursi. Seldom found in capsule form.

Summary

Buchu was popular in the 1800's as a hangover cure. English patent medicines used it in herbal combinations for treating coughs and colds. The authoritative Complete German Commission E Monographs notes that buchu leaf is used for inflammation and infection of the kidneys and urinary tract, for bladder irritations, as a disinfectant of the urinary tract, and as a diuretic. Buchu is also often used to treat prostate infections. The primary action of the herb is antimicrobial.

Precautions

None.

If you had lived in Victorian England and had had a bit too much ale and whiskey at the local neighborhood pub the night before, you might have tried to cure your hangover with a patent medicine containing buchu leaf powder.

Buchu leaf powder, also called barsoma betulina, may help in getting a bladder infection under control, for this was the primary use of this natural herb for centuries among the Zulus and other indigenous peoples of present-day South Africa.

The cut barosama betulina leaves can be brewed in tea and drunk as a possible way to relieve gastrointestinal ailments. The Buchu plant itself is a small flowering shrub, not an “herb” in the technical sense. Nonetheless, as a botanical, barosma betulina is often categorized with dried herbs and flowers, ground roots, essential oils and seeds used for therapeutic purposes

For educational purposes only

This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Folklore Information