Hong Tian Kui
StarBegonia fimbristipula Hance
Synonyms: Begonia rex var. fimbristipula (Hance) auct.
Also known as: Hung T'ien K'uei · Wade–Giles
Safety at a glance
No rule in our tables for this herb: pregnancy, breastfeeding, incompatible pairs (十八反 / 十九畏), herb–drug, dose ceiling. This is not a safety clearance.
Not graded — No toxicity grade is recorded. Most herbs in the catalogue carry none.
Traditionally used for
- Cough & breathing
- Digestion
- Skin
☯ TCM Properties
Cleares Heat, cools the Blood, invigorates the Blood, breaks up Blood Stasis and resolves toxicity
Traditional Chinese Uses
Hong Tian Kui is the whole herb of Begonia fimbristipula (Begoniaceae), a small tuberous begonia of shaded mountain slopes in southern China. Sweet and cool, entering the Liver and Stomach channels, it clears Heat and cools the Blood, invigorates the Blood to break up Blood Stasis, and resolves toxicity. It is used for Lung-Heat cough and coughing of blood, feverish and inflammatory conditions, painful swellings and toxic sores, burns, and pain from Blood stasis.
Prized for its tart flavor, it is most often taken as a cooling herbal tea, frequently combined with honeysuckle (Jin Yin Hua), chrysanthemum (Ju Hua) or licorice (Gan Cao) to clear Heat and toxins. As a regional folk medicinal it is best used with qualified guidance.
Western Herbalism Properties
Click a node for details · double-click to expand it · Ctrl/⌘ + scroll or two fingers to zoom and pan.
Botanical Description
Begonia fimbristipula is a small, nearly stemless, slightly succulent perennial herb of the Begoniaceae, arising from a short subterranean tuber-like rhizome. The few basal leaves are long-petioled, broadly ovate and asymmetric with a cordate base, shallowly lobed and irregularly serrate margins, green above and characteristically red-purple beneath, edged with fine hairs. The monoecious pink to rose-red flowers are borne in slender cymose scapes. Native to shaded, moist cliffs and ravines of southern China, the whole plant (harvested with the tuber) is used to clear heat, cool and invigorate the blood, break blood stasis, and resolve toxicity, treating cough with blood, injuries, and swellings.
Shaded moist rock crevices, cliff faces, and forested ravines in humid subtropical hills, roughly 700-1900 m elevation.
Active Constituents
Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside
AnthocyaninReported among the anthocyanins of Begonia fimbristipula and responsible, with the related cyanidins, for the deep red colour of the leaf that gives the herb its name. Antioxidant activity is inferred from the compound class; nothing has been measured for this species in animals or people.
Cyanidin-3-O-rutinoside
AnthocyaninReported alongside cyanidin-3-O-glucoside in this species. Anthocyanin yield in this plant is known mainly from tissue-culture work aimed at raising pigment content, not from analysis of the dispensed crude drug, so no dependable content figure exists.
Soluble oxalates
Organic acid saltsSoluble oxalates are the recognised toxic principle across the genus Begonia and account for the sour taste and the oral and gastric irritation reported after eating begonias, with the highest concentration in the underground parts. This has not been quantified in Begonia fimbristipula specifically, so it is a genus-level caution rather than a measured constituent of this drug.
Dosage Calculator
⚖ Dosage Calculator
A weight-based mathematical estimate for Hong Tian Kui. Not a prescription.
References
- Bo Zhao, Yun-Qian Du, Jing-Jian Li, Wen-Xiu Tang, Shu-Hua Zhong. Development of 18 novel microsatellite primers for Begonia fimbristipula (Begoniaceae), an endangered medicinal plant in China . Applications in Plant Sciences (2016) [DOI]
- Tian-Wen Xiao, Zheng-Feng Wang, Hai-Fei Yan. A chromosomal-level genome assembly of Begonia fimbristipula (Begoniaceae) . Scientific Data (2025) [DOI]
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
📝 Notes
Public notes from the community and your own private notes on Hong Tian Kui.
No notes yet.