The Riverside Herbal Monograph Library is a growing, evidence-aware reference to medicinal plants. It is written for two audiences at once: members of the public who want reliable explanations without jargon, and students or practitioners who need botanical, pharmacological and clinical detail with sources they can follow.
Each monograph separates traditional use, pharmacology, human clinical evidence and regulatory conclusions. Those are not interchangeable forms of evidence. Where the evidence is uncertain, preparation-specific or contradictory, we say so.
How to use these monographs
- Start with “At a glance” for the plain-English overview.
- Botanical profile identifies species, family and medicinal part.
- Constituents summarises important chemical groups without pretending one molecule explains the whole herb.
- Evidence distinguishes laboratory findings, traditional use, regulatory assessment and human clinical outcomes.
- Safety covers adverse effects, contraindications and interactions where evidence exists.
- Student note highlights common evidence and citation traps.
- References link to regulatory documents, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and peer-reviewed literature that can be checked independently.
Important: these pages are educational resources, not prescribing guides. Dose, preparation and suitability depend on the exact product and the person using it. Do not stop prescribed medication or use a monograph as a substitute for individual medical or pharmaceutical advice.
Herbal monographs — A–Z
A
- Ashwagandha — Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal
Root; Solanaceae. Ayurvedic restorative and modern adaptogen with stress and sleep research, alongside important thyroid, liver and medicine-interaction considerations. - Agnus castus — Vitex agnus-castus L.
Fruit; Lamiaceae. Traditional menstrual and reproductive herb with modern PMS and cyclic-mastalgia evidence that illustrates why extract characterisation and trial quality matter.
B
- Black cohosh — Actaea racemosa L.
Rhizome and root; Ranunculaceae. Traditional women’s-health and musculoskeletal herb with a modern evidence base centred on menopausal symptoms and product-specific safety questions.
C
- Chamomile, German — Matricaria recutita L.
Flower; Asteraceae. A useful example of long traditional use, limited modern evidence for many claims, and why essential-oil data cannot simply be transferred to tea.
D
- Dandelion — Taraxacum officinale
Root, leaf and root with herb; Asteraceae. A plant-parts monograph showing different digestive and urinary traditions for different parts.
E
- Elder — Sambucus nigra L.
Flower and fruit; Adoxaceae. Elderflower and elderberry have separate traditional uses, chemistry, evidence and EMA status. - Eleuthero — Eleutherococcus senticosus (Rupr. & Maxim.) Maxim.
Root; Araliaceae. Classic adaptogen and Soviet-era tonic with an EMA monograph for traditional use in fatigue and weakness. - Echinacea — Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench.
Root and flowering aerial parts; Asteraceae. Shows why species, plant part and extraction method matter when interpreting common-cold research.
F
- Feverfew — Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Sch.Bip.
Herb; Asteraceae. Traditional headache and menstrual herb, with modern research focused on migraine prevention and preparation quality.
G
- Ginseng, Panax — Panax ginseng C.A. Mey.
Root; Araliaceae. Classic adaptogen and tonic; includes the important distinction between white and red ginseng processing.
- Ginkgo — Ginkgo biloba L.
Leaf; Ginkgoaceae. Standardised extract evidence, dementia treatment versus prevention, and the difference between leaf extract and toxic seeds. - Ginger — Zingiber officinale Roscoe
Rhizome; Zingiberaceae. Clinical research on nausea alongside an instructive tension between pregnancy trial data and regulatory precautions.
H
- Holy basil — Ocimum tenuiflorum L.
Leaf and aerial parts; Lamiaceae. Ayurvedic tulsi and modern adaptogen with human stress and sleep research. - Hawthorn — Crataegus spp.
Leaf with flower and fruit; Rosaceae. A plant-parts monograph showing why flowering tops, leaves and haws should not be treated as one interchangeable herbal drug. - Horse chestnut — Aesculus hippocastanum L.
Seed; Sapindaceae. Traditional venous herb and a strong example of why standardised extract evidence cannot be transferred to raw plant material.
L
- Liquorice — Glycyrrhiza spp.
Root; Fabaceae. A major safety monograph covering glycyrrhizin, pseudoaldosteronism, hypertension, hypokalaemia and why DGL is a different intervention.
M
- Milk thistle — Silybum marianum (L.) Gaertn.
Fruit; Asteraceae. Separates milk thistle, silymarin and silibinin and critically examines the gap between “liver detox” marketing and clinical evidence.
N
- Nettle — Urtica dioica L.
Leaf, aerial herb and root; Urticaceae. Separate monographs and uses for urinary, musculoskeletal and prostate-focused preparations.
P
- Peppermint — Mentha × piperita L.
Leaf and essential oil; Lamiaceae. Preparation matters: evidence for enteric-coated peppermint oil in IBS cannot simply be transferred to peppermint tea.
R
- Rhodiola — Rhodiola rosea L.
Rhizome and root; Crassulaceae. Classic northern adaptogen with rosavins, salidroside, EMA traditional-use status and modern stress/fatigue research.
S
- Schisandra — Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill.
Fruit; Schisandraceae. Wu Wei Zi traditional tonic and modern adaptogen with lignan pharmacology and important CYP/P-glycoprotein interaction potential. - Senna — Senna alexandrina Mill.
Leaf; Fabaceae. Traditional purgative and modern stimulant laxative, with a practitioner note on why herbalists usually reach for gentler approaches first. - St John’s wort — Hypericum perforatum L.
Flowering aerial parts; Hypericaceae. One of the clearest examples of clinically important herb–drug interactions and extract-specific evidence.
T
- Turmeric — Curcuma longa L.
Rhizome; Zingiberaceae. Distinguishes whole turmeric from curcumin and enhanced formulations, including osteoarthritis evidence and liver-injury safety signals.
V
- Valerian — Valeriana officinalis L.
Root and rhizome; Caprifoliaceae. Long traditional use for sleep and tension, mixed systematic-review evidence, and preparation-specific EMA conclusions.
Evidence key
Throughout the library, we use the following language deliberately:
- Traditional use: supported primarily by documented long-standing medicinal use rather than modern clinical trials.
- Plausible / mechanistic: supported by pharmacology, laboratory or preclinical evidence but not sufficient on its own to establish a clinical effect.
- Clinical evidence: studied in people. Quality may range from small preliminary trials to systematic reviews.
- Well-established use: a specific regulatory term used in European herbal assessment where defined evidence requirements are met for particular preparations and indications.
- Insufficient evidence: research exists but is too weak, inconsistent, indirect or heterogeneous for a confident conclusion.
Referencing standard
References are numbered within each monograph. We prioritise European Medicines Agency HMPC monographs and assessment reports, UK regulatory or NHS sources where relevant, NCCIH evidence summaries, systematic reviews, meta-analyses and peer-reviewed pharmacognosy literature. A reference appearing on a page does not mean Riverside endorses every conclusion in that source; it means the statement can be traced and checked.
For students
You are welcome to use these monographs as a starting point for study and to follow their references into the primary literature. For academic work, cite the original source rather than citing Riverside as though it were the primary evidence. Regulatory monographs and systematic reviews are particularly useful for finding older studies and understanding how evidence has been assessed.
When using any herbal monograph academically, record the species, medicinal part, preparation, extraction method and evidence category. “A study of turmeric” or “a trial of echinacea” is often too imprecise to be scientifically useful.
For the public
You do not need a pharmacology degree to use this library. Technical terms are explained where they matter, and the “At a glance” section of each monograph gives the central points without requiring you to read the chemistry.
For broader information about herbal medicine, visit Herbal Medicine at Riverside, What is herbal medicine?, our guide to preparations, or the Safety and Interactions guide.
Current library: 25 fully referenced monographs. Standard established September 2026. Monographs are reviewed and expanded as the evidence base and regulatory documents change.