About Solidago virgaurea L.
Solidago virgaurea L., commonly called European goldenrod or woundwort, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the Asteraceae family. It has a wide native range across most of Europe, North Africa, and northern, central, and southwestern Asia including countries like China, Russia, India, Turkey, and Kazakhstan. It is cultivated as a garden flower, with many distinct cultivars available, and blooms heavily in late summer. This perennial herb reaches up to 100 cm (40 inches) in height, and grows with a branching underground caudex and a woody rhizome. It produces clusters of many small yellow flower heads at the top of its stem. The accepted infraspecific taxa of Solidago virgaurea are: Solidago virgaurea subsp. alpestris (Waldst. & Kit.) Gremli, Solidago virgaurea subsp. armena (Grossh.) Greuter, Solidago virgaurea subsp. asiatica Kitam. ex Hara, Solidago virgaurea var. calcicola Fernald, Solidago virgaurea subsp. caucasica (Kem.-Nath.) Greuter, Solidago virgaurea subsp. dahurica (Kitag.) Kitag., Solidago virgaurea subsp. gigantea (Nakai) Kitam., Solidago virgaurea var. insularis (Kitam.) Hara, Solidago virgaurea subsp. jailarum (Juz.) Tzvelev, Solidago virgaurea subsp. lapponica (With.) Tzvelev, Solidago virgaurea subsp. macrorrhiza (Lange) Nyman, Solidago virgaurea subsp. minuta (L.) Arcang., Solidago virgaurea subsp. stenophylla (G.E.Schultz) Tzvelev, Solidago virgaurea subsp. talyschensis (Tzvelev) Sennikov, Solidago virgaurea subsp. taurica (Juz.) Tzvelev, Solidago virgaurea subsp. turfosa (Woronow ex Grossh.) Greuter, Solidago virgaurea subsp. virgaurea, and Solidago virgaurea var. virgaurea. In 15th and 16th century Europe, Solidago virgaurea was used to heal wounds. Its astringent, diuretic, and antiseptic properties are well documented. Non-clinical data from multiple European Medicines Agency assessments of Solidago virgaurea demonstrate diuretic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, analgesic, spasmolytic, antibacterial, and immunomodulatory activity. No single individual ingredient has been found to cause these effects, so the whole herbal preparation made from Solidago inflorescences must be classified as the active ingredient. Additionally, the clinical relevance of these in vitro observed effects has not been confirmed by clinical studies.
