Identification & Quality Standard
Fructus Gardeniae
Botanical Origin
The dried mature fruit of Gardenia jasminoides Ellis. (Rubiaceae)
Production Regions
Primarily produced in the Chinese provinces of Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian.
Quality Requirements
Superior medicinal material has thin skin, full, reddish-yellow color.
Macroscopic Features
Inverse oval, elliptical or long elliptical shape, 1.4~3.5cm long, 0.8~1.8cm diameter. Externally reddish-brown or reddish-yellow, slightly lustrous, with 6-8 wing-like longitudinal ridges, with one longitudinal vein between every 2 ridges, apex has dark yellowish-green remnants of persistent calyx, with 6-8 long lobes, lobes are 1~2.5cm long, 2~3mm wide, often crushed, fruit base shrunken and stem-like, end has round stem scar. Fruit skin is thin and brittle, inner surface is fresh yellow or reddish-yellow. Lustrous, with 2~3 bulging pseudoseptums. Fractured surface is fresh yellow, numerous seeds, flat oval or flat rectangular shape, clustered into spherical lumps, brownish-red, externally has thin and dense indented small spots; endosperm is horn-like; embryo is long, with 2 heart-like cotyledons. faint odor, slightly sour and bitter taste.
