“The Natural Medicine Garden”

S hennongjia Forestry District is rich in such soil types as yellow brown soil,brown soil,and dark brown soil.There is a well-developed river system with more than 300 rivers of various lengths.“The rich and diverse medicinal resources in Shennongjia are the products of its unique landscapes and complex geological conditions,”Zhan Yahua explains,“Above all,such suitable natural conditions provide a perfect growing environment for various medicinal resources.”

格桑花海（龚建国摄）Gesang flower sea(Photo by Gong Jianguo)

Such a fantastic natural environment makes the Chinese medicinalresources of Shennongjia unique in all of Central China,thus earning it the reputation of“the Natural Medicine Garden.”On Shennongjia’s area of3253 square kilometers,3684 kinds of higher plants were found.Among them 70%are herbal plants.There are all together 3205 varieties of medicinal resources in Shennongjia,covering medicinal plants, medicinal animals, and medicinal mines.According to the fourth national survey of Chinese medicine resources,Shennongjia’s herbs are divided into 252 families which include 1081 genera,covering one sixths of the total TCM resources in China,and over two thirds ofthat in Hubei.

《神农架中药资源图志》The Checklist of Traditional Chinese Medicine Resources in Shennongjia

梦幻大九湖（刘庆军摄）Beautifulclouds and their reflections in Dajiu Lake(Photo by Liu Qingjun)

Professor Zhang Daigui from the School of Resources and Environmental Science at Jishou University pointed out that not only was Shennongjia rich in species,but also almost all of them could be utilized.Therefore traditional Chinese medicine has long been used by the locals,more than 160 well-known Chinese folk herbal medicines that are represented by“18 medicalherbs named‘Gold Hairpins,’” “36 medicinal herbs named‘Huanyang,’”and“72 medicinal herbs named‘Seven.’” Furthermore,as Wang Yubing,professor from the School of Biology and Pharmacy at Three Gorges University introduced,because of the abundant,unique,and high-quality resources in Shennongjia,the herbal medicines here have greater medicinal value and thus can be sold for higher prices than those from other areas. For example, Dendrobium flexicaule is usually sold for 3000 yuan per catty online;when produced in Shennongjia,however,it often costs 10,000 to 15,000 yuan.

“天然药园”百花齐放

林区土壤类型丰富，有黄棕壤、棕壤、暗棕壤等，且全区水系发达，共有大小河流300多条。“神农架地形地貌奇特、地质条件复杂，也促成了药材资源的丰富多样。”詹亚华解释道，“总而言之，诸多适宜的自然条件为多种药用资源生长提供了绝佳环境。”

得天独厚的自然环境，造就了神农架独步华中的中医药健康养生资源，为其赢得“天然药园”美誉。在神农架3253平方公里土地上，分布高等植物3684种，有70%为中草药品。神农架药用资源种类，涵盖药用植物、药用动物、药用矿物资源，共计3205种。据第四次中药资源普查，神农架中草药品种共有252科1081属2552种，资源总种类占全国中药资源的1/6以上，占湖北全省中药资源的2/3以上。

吉首大学资源与环境科学学院张代贵教授指出，神农架不仅物种丰富，而且几乎全部可以利用，故而民间长期有用中药的传统，以“十八金钗”、“三十六还阳”、“七十二七”等为代表的160余种民间中草药闻名遐迩。而且，据三峡大学生物与制药学院副教授王玉兵介绍，由于神农架资源丰富、独特、优质，当地的中草药药用价值更高，所以售价也更高。比如，普通的曲茎石斛在网上通常卖到3000元每斤，而神农架产的曲茎石斛一般售价在10000到15000之间。