Native to the hills of western China and Tibet, this medicinal perennial likes rich, moist soil and sun.  In mid-summer, it grows up to 2 feet tall with showy white blossoms.  While so many gentian species are blue, these white blossoms really let you see the breathtaking black stippling patterns inside the petals.  Our plants have been quite hardy and persisted through the record-setting cold winter of 2013-14.

For millennia, we humans have been browsing on bitter plants in between meals, and our digestive system has evolved to depend on that flavor, such that when we don’t get our bitters, we can often experience indigestion, irritable bowels, sluggish elimination, and poor assimilation.  Gentian is well known for its medicinal bitter flavor.  It is so useful alone or in combination with other herbs as a digestive bitters taken before and after meals.  The flavor is so important to tune up our digestive symphony, and unlike some overly bitter plants, gentian is a gentle but effective tonic that can be used on a regular basis.