Sargent's Vine (Red Vine)

Sargentodoxa cuneata

Also known as Da Xue Teng, Hong Teng, Chinese Red Vine, Big Blood Vine, Sargentodoxa

At a glance

Family

Lardizabalaceae (sometimes placed in its own family, Sargentodoxaceae, as the genus's only species)

Type

Woody, deciduous climbing vine (liana)

Parts used

Stem, cut into slices and dried

Size

A vigorous climber that can scale 30 feet or more given a sturdy support

Bloom

Small, fragrant, yellow-green flowers in loose spring racemes, followed by blue-black berries

Habitat

Forest edges, ravines, and thickets across central and southern China, from Hubei and Sichuan down into Yunnan and Guangxi

Acquisition

Grow or buy

This plant in HerbSense

Key benefits

✦

Traditionally supports healthy circulation

Used for aching, stiff joints

Traditionally eases monthly discomfort

Thought to calm irritation and swelling

Traditional uses

✦

In Chinese herbalism, the tough, woody stem of this forest vine is known as Da Xue Teng, or big blood vine, and has long been gathered from the mountain woodlands where it climbs old trees toward the light. Herbalists traditionally simmered the sliced stem into decoctions meant to invigorate the blood and clear stagnation, reaching for it when pain settled into the joints, the abdomen, or the monthly cycle. It has also traditionally been used to support recovery after minor injury, in keeping with the old idea that a plant which bleeds red sap can help blood move freely again. Village healers in the herb's native range considered it a reliable, everyday remedy rather than an exotic one, the kind of vine every household recognized by sight.

How to grow & use it

✦

🔒

The full apothecary for Sargent's Vine (Red Vine)

Traditional remedies and step-by-step preparations, a complete growing guide, and how to harvest, dry, and store it, all unlocked with HerbLens Unlimited.

✦Remedies & preparations
✦ Growing guide
✦Harvest & storage

Unlock every plant

From under $6 a month. Free plant identifications always included.

Pairs well with

✦Angelica sinensis (Dang Gui)
✦Safflower (Hong Hua)
✦Corydalis

Substitutes

✦Salvia miltiorrhiza (Dan Shen)
✦Spatholobus suberectus (Ji Xue Teng)

Choose it when

“For the old climbing vine the mountain healers trusted to keep blood moving and joints easy through the damp seasons.”

Did you know?

The vine earned its old name, big blood vine, because a fresh cut through its stem oozes a dark reddish sap, and generations of herbalists took this as a sign that the plant was suited to helping blood move.

Safety

Sargentodoxa is not significantly toxic, but because it strongly invigorates the blood, it is traditionally avoided during pregnancy and used cautiously with blood-thinning medications, where it may raise bleeding risk.