Xue Lian

Saussurea involucrata, commonly known as snow lotus, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Asteraceae, endemic to high-altitude rocky slopes and scree of the Tian Shan, Pamir, and Altai mountain ranges of Central Asia, typically growing between 2400 and 4000 meters elevation. It produces a stout taproot and a rosette of oblong, dentate basal leaves covered in soft white woolly hairs. The flowering stem rises 15-35 cm and is crowned by a dense, hemispherical cluster of dark purple disc florets enclosed by conspicuous, papery, semi-translucent yellowish-white involucral bracts that resemble petals. These insulating bracts protect the inflorescence from extreme cold, UV, and wind. The whole flowering plant is harvested for traditional medicinal use.