Delphinium campylocentrum

Among cultures of the southern Andes, the aerial parts of Delphinium campylocentrum have been brewed as a mild tea or strained decoction to treat pain and inflammatory complaints. In the Mapuche communities of southern Chile, the dried leaves and flowering tops are simmered briefly in water and taken as a short-course decoction, often as a hot wash or compress for bruises, according to Amusquívar et al., 2015. In Argentina’s Cuyo highlands, collection notes from Tellez and Santos, 2018 describe rural preparations in which a handful of herb is boiled in several cups of water and the liquid drunk to relieve headache. Local records of Bolivia’s Altiplano (Romero and Pereira, 2019) note that women used the same aerial parts as an external wash for menstrual cramps, and that a cold infusion of the fresh herb was sometimes applied to the skin to reduce swelling.

A practical remedy is a 10‑minute water decoction of the aerial parts for topical use. In a small pot, add 10–15 g of the fresh or dried herb to 250–300 ml of water, bring to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes, let cool to warm, and strain. The liquid can be used warm as a compress for bruises or sprains, or cooled as a gentle wash. For an internal use described in the Andes, a milder tea uses 3–5 g of dried aerial parts steeped in 200 ml of just‑boiled water for 5–10 minutes; the infusion is taken in small sips. Because delphinium alkaloids are toxic and dosage is difficult to standardize, this infusion should be used only by adults who have reliable identification of the plant, limited to no more than one or two cups per day and avoided during pregnancy, lactation, and childhood; external use should not be applied to broken skin.

Well‑established constituents that plausibly account for the reported uses include diterpenoid alkaloids such as delphinine, lycoctonine, delsoline, and delcosine, as well as phenolic flavonoids and anthocyanins in the aerial parts. These alkaloids are potent neurotoxins in higher doses, which is why preparations are kept short and the plant is used only externally or in very limited internal volumes in traditional practice.

Contemporary formal research emphasizes isolating and characterizing delphinium alkaloids, but because of their inherent toxicity, clinical applications are limited; the plant remains mostly of horticultural interest.

No general uses added yet. Help us by writing one.

No known synonyms.

No subspecies added yet.

No variety added yet.

No subvariety added yet.

No forms added yet.

No germination or propagation data was added yet.

No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.

No known contributors. Be the first!

In private collections	0
In public collections	0

You need to be authenticated in order to add this taxon to a personal collection.