Tian Qi Flower Tea (Notoginseng Flower Tea)

Why people make this tea

Tian qi (also known as notoginseng or san qi) is one of the most celebrated herbs in traditional Chinese medicine, prized above all for its ability to support healthy blood circulation, stop bleeding, and dissolve blood stasis. The flower of the tian qi plant is gentler than the root — cooling rather than warming — and is particularly associated with clearing heat that has risen to the head, liver, and eyes. At Chinese herb shops, two types are commonly available: small stemless flower “pearls” (tian qi hua zhu), and larger stemmed flowers at a lower price. The three-year stemless variety is generally considered of higher quality than the two-year stemmed type, though both are useful.

This tea is one of the simplest possible preparations — just steep a few flowers in boiling water for three minutes. It has a mild, slightly bitter and clean flavour.

Who it suits / who should be cautious

• Suits adults with heat-pattern conditions: feeling hot, flushed, easily irritated or short-tempered, or experiencing heat-related acne or lip sores
• Traditionally used for constipation and detoxification linked to excess internal heat
• Useful for those with mildly elevated blood pressure, excessive blood lipids, or mild dizziness and headaches related to liver heat rising
• Those who experience teeth grinding at night, hot palms, or poor sleep from “liver fire” may find it helpful
• Tian qi flower is cooling (liang xing). Avoid or use very sparingly if you are: pregnant, menstruating (it may be too cooling), or have a cold constitution. During menstruation, substitute rose, albizzia, or osmanthus flower tea, which are neutral or mildly warming
• Do not confuse with ginseng flowers (ren shen hua), which look very similar but have a completely different nature — ginseng flower is warming, tian qi flower is cooling

Why these ingredients (the food-therapy logic)

• Tian qi flower (tian qi hua): In traditional Chinese medicine, the flower is considered to clear heat and toxins, calm the liver, improve eyesight, reduce inflammation, ease pain, and support healthy blood pressure and lipid levels. The flower is milder and more cooling than the root; the root is more potent for stopping bleeding and resolving blood stasis

Ingredients (1 cup)

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Dried tian qi flowers	6 to 8 flower heads	Rinse briefly with boiling water before steeping

Method

1. Place the tian qi flowers in a cup or small teapot.
2. Pour a small amount of boiling water over the flowers, swirl briefly, and discard this first rinse (this removes any dust).
3. Add fresh boiling water and allow to steep for about 3 minutes.
4. Drink when comfortable to sip. The flowers can be re-steeped 2 to 3 times, adding fresh boiling water each time, until the flavour is no longer present.

Bro Niu’s tips

• Choose tian qi flowers carefully: stemless “pearls” (tian qi hua zhu) are the three-year flowers and are considered more potent. Stemmed flowers are from two-year plants and cost less but still have good effect. Both types are available at Chinese herb shops.
• Be careful not to buy ginseng flowers sold as a substitute — the two look almost identical, but ginseng flowers are warming while tian qi flowers are cooling. Ginseng flower buds tend to be slightly smaller. If in doubt, buy from a reputable herb shop and ask.
• For readers who want a more targeted approach to blood pressure and cholesterol, Bro Niu recommends the patent Chinese medicine “Compound Danshen Tablets” (fu fang dan shen pian), available at reputable Chinese herbal pharmacies — these are primarily composed of tian qi (notoginseng) and danshen (salvia root) and are suitable for ongoing use.
• For a reader who experienced recurring lip sores, Bro Niu confirmed that tian qi flower tea is safe and suitable to drink. To further support immune resilience, combine astragalus (bei qi, 3 qian), ophiopogon (mai dong, 3 qian), and honeysuckle flowers (jin yin hua, 1 tablespoon) — simmer in water for 15 minutes and drink as a tea.
• During menstruation, switch to rose flower (mei gui hua), albizzia flower (he huan hua), or osmanthus flower (gui hua) tea — these are nature-neutral or mildly warming and are more appropriate for that time of the month.

Community questions answered (selected)

• Q (Lungcon): For someone with all three highs, how do I prepare fresh tian qi and salvia (dan shen) as a decoction? How much water and how long? Bro Niu: For this purpose, it is simpler and more reliable to buy the ready-made “Compound Danshen Tablets” (fu fang dan shen pian) from a reputable Chinese herbal pharmacy. This patent formula is primarily tian qi and salvia, and is suitable for two people to take alternating daily or every other day.

• Q (JK): I have a lip sore that keeps cycling back and forth, and my chin lymph node is slightly swollen. My period is also coming. Can I drink tian qi flower tea? Bro Niu: Yes, you can drink tian qi flower tea for the lip sore and heat symptoms. Since recurring lip sores often signal low immunity, it also helps to make an astragalus-ophiopogon-honeysuckle tea to nourish yin and boost resistance. During your period, tian qi and honeysuckle flowers are both cooling — switch to rose, albizzia, or osmanthus flower tea instead, then return to the tian qi tea afterwards.

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Published December 15, 2014 · Adapted and translated for Nourilo from a traditional home-kitchen recipe. Approx. 4 min read.