Solidago virgaurea



Solidago virgaurea, the European goldenrod or woundwort, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae. It is widespread across most of Europe as well as North Africa and northern, central, and southwestern Asia (China, Russia, India, Turkey, Kazakhstan, etc.). It is grown as a garden flower with many different cultivars. It flowers profusely in late summer.

Solidago virgaurea is a perennial herb up to 100 cm (40 inches) tall, with a branching underground caudex and a woody rhizome. It produces arrays of numerous small yellow flower heads at the top of the stem.


 * Subspecies and varieties
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. alpestris (Waldst. & Kit.) Gremli
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. armena (Grossh.) Greuter
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. asiatica Kitam. ex Hara
 * Solidago virgaurea var. calcicola Fernald
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. caucasica (Kem.-Nath.) Greuter
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. dahurica (Kitag.) Kitag.
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. gigantea (Nakai) Kitam.
 * Solidago virgaurea var. insularis (Kitam.) Hara
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. jailarum (Juz.) Tzvelev
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. lapponica (With.) Tzvelev
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. macrorrhiza (Lange) Nyman
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. minuta (L.) Arcang.
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. stenophylla (G.E.Schultz) Tzvelev
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. talyschensis (Tzvelev) Sennikov
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. taurica (Juz.) Tzvelev
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. turfosa (Woronow ex Grossh.) Greuter
 * Solidago virgaurea subsp. virgaurea
 * Solidago virgaurea var. virgaurea

Medicinal uses
In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries Solidago virgaurea was used in Europe to heal wounds. Its astringent, diuretic, antiseptic and other properties are well known. In various assessments by the European Medicines Agency with respect to Solidago virgaurea, non-clinical data shows diuretic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, analgesic and spasmolytic, antibacterial, and immunomodulatory activity. However, as no single ingredient is responsible for these effects, the whole herbal preparation of Solidago inflorescences must be considered as the active ingredient. Further, the relevance of those effects found in vitro could not be confirmed by clinical studies.