Book Description

Presents concise monographs, accompanied by full-colour photographs, for the 150 plant species most commonly used for medicinal purposes in the Republic of Korea. In view of the country's long and successful history in the use of traditional medicines, the book aims to provide written and visual documentation of important plants and summarize their uses to treat ailments, protect against disease, or promote health. In so doing, the book also aims to encourage the wider use of Korea's medicinal plants and promote their conservation. Each plant species is covered according to a common format, which includes the scientific name of the plant, Korean name, English common name, parts used, and clinical uses in traditional Korean medicine. Also included are a detailed botanical description of the plant, its habitat and geographical distribution, followed by a summary of biological actions and chemical components as reported in the traditional medicine literature. The 150 full-colour photographs, included to facilitate identification of plants and plant parts used for medicinal purposes, were taken under natural conditions during the flowering or fruiting seasons. Retrieval of information is facilitated by the inclusion of indexes giving scientific names, the English common names, and the Korean plant names.