Three-Parted Beggarticks Benefits and Uses

Dr. Boris Wydoff

Three-parted beggarticks (Bidens tripartita) is an annual herbaceous plant from the daisy family. Herbal medicine references describe it as a traditional remedy used in the form of infusions, teas, and water decoctions. The plant was valued for its diuretic, diaphoretic, and other properties described in herbal references.

What is this plant and how can you recognize three-parted beggarticks?

I often talk about medicinal herbs from the very beginning: it is important to first understand exactly what we are looking at. Three-parted beggarticks has the botanical name Bidens tripartita L. It is an annual herbaceous plant from the daisy family.

According to herbal medicine references, three-parted beggarticks usually grows to about 30 to 100 cm. It has an upright, strongly branched stem. The leaves are arranged opposite each other. They have a deeply three-parted structure, and the individual parts of the leaf resemble elongated, toothed lobes.

The flowers of three-parted beggarticks are small and yellow, gathered into flower heads. These flower heads have a brownish-yellow color and are surrounded by a double involucre. The fruits are elongated, flattened achenes with small teeth. Thanks to these teeth, the fruits easily cling to people's clothing and animal fur. This is why the plant received the folk name "beggarticks."

Three-parted beggarticks flowers from June to September. It is found in many regions of Russia, except the Arctic. The plant is also widespread in the Caucasus and Central Asia. It can usually be found in wet meadows, near rivers, ditches, and marshy areas.

In herbal references, three-parted beggarticks is considered one of the ancient folk medicinal plants. It has been used for a long time, and today the herb is used in traditional herbal medicine in various forms.

What features are especially important when harvesting?

Three-parted beggarticks has several characteristic botanical features that make it possible to identify the plant directly in nature. The stem is not simply upright but strongly branched. The leaves are arranged opposite each other and are joined at the bases. Their three deep lobes are lance-shaped, have toothed edges, and narrow at the base into a winged petiole.

The flower heads also have distinctive structural features. The outer bracts of the double involucre are longer than the inner ones and resemble leaves. The inner bracts are pressed against the flower head, papery, and reddish in color. The flowers are small, yellow, tubular, and bisexual.

The fruits develop bristly teeth. Teeth are also found on the ribs of the achene and point downward. These features help the fruits cling to animal fur and people's clothing. As a result, when the fruits mature, three-parted beggarticks can easily spread to new places.

Why is three-parted beggarticks called scrofula herb?

The name "scrofula herb" is connected with its traditional folk use. Three-parted beggarticks is one of the oldest medicinal plants, but it became especially firmly associated with conditions that were once called scrofula.

In old sources, scrofula referred to scrofulosis, while in folk practice the word was also used for various skin conditions, especially in children. In Russia, three-parted beggarticks became widely popular for this purpose.

Sources from the 19th century describe how a decoction of three-parted beggarticks could be taken internally while the affected areas of skin were washed with the same decoction. This combination of internal and external use was characteristic of old folk practice.

Three-parted beggarticks benefits: what was the plant valued for?

According to herbal medicine references, three-parted beggarticks herb contains essential oil, saponins, tannins, carbohydrates and related compounds, vitamin C, carotene, organic acids, and steroids.

The content of individual substances is described as follows: essential oil may range from 0.05 to 1.34%, tannins from 1.88 to 12%, carbohydrates and related compounds from 4.51 to 4.65%, and organic acids at about 6.2%.

Herbal references describe three-parted beggarticks as being used as a diuretic, diaphoretic, and fever-reducing remedy. It was also used in folk practice for various skin conditions and metabolic disorders.

It is important to understand that descriptions of the plant's properties in reference books relate to traditional use of the herb. They do not mean that the plant replaces treatment prescribed by a doctor.

What else is found in the herb?

In addition to the substances listed above, three-parted beggarticks is noted to contain saponins and steroid compounds. Vitamin C and carotene are also among the plant components described in reference literature.

The amounts of individual substances can vary considerably. For example, essential oil is reported at 0.05 to 1.34%, while tannins range from 1.88 to 12%. Therefore, the composition of herbal raw material should not be considered exactly the same in every harvested batch.

In older pharmacognostic sources, three-parted beggarticks was regarded specifically as medicinal plant material. The herb has the pharmaceutical name Herba Bidentis tripartiti.

How was three-parted beggarticks used in medical practice?

Reference books describe the use of three-parted beggarticks not only as a single plant but also as part of herbal mixtures. It was included in mixtures used as tonic, immunostimulating, desensitizing, and fever-reducing remedies.

Three-parted beggarticks was included in the national State Pharmacopoeia. Sources mention editions I, III, and XI. This shows that the plant had not only folk but also official pharmacopoeial significance during certain periods of domestic medicine.

At the same time, modern views on safety and effectiveness cannot automatically be equated with information from old pharmacopoeias and folk sources.

How does three-parted beggarticks affect the skin?

Herbal medicine references describe external use of three-parted beggarticks as water decoctions. The herb was used to prepare baths and washes.

According to reference books, a decoction of the herb was used for diatheses and certain skin conditions in children. It is also described as having a drying effect on the skin when used externally and as potentially helping affected areas recover more quickly.

In folk practice, three-parted beggarticks became known as "scrofula herb." It was traditionally used for conditions that older sources called scrofula.

How is three-parted beggarticks connected with metabolism?

Herbal medicine references state that three-parted beggarticks was used for various diatheses accompanied by urticarial rashes, as well as for some skin manifestations. Herbal references also describe its use as a diuretic. Such information relates to traditional use of the plant.

What other properties are described in reference books?

Three-parted beggarticks was included in preparations described in medical practice as tonic, fever-reducing, and other herbal remedies. In scientific medicine, the plant was used mainly in the form of infusions and teas.

I always recommend being careful with any herb. Even a familiar plant requires proper harvesting, preparation, and caution when used.

Three-parted beggarticks uses: how was the herb used?

Reference books describe several forms of use for three-parted beggarticks. The main ones are infusion, tea, and water decoction.

Three-parted beggarticks tea was given to children in folk practice. The use of a water decoction for baths is also described. Medical reference books mention the use of an infusion and concentrate for baths.

At the same time, exact preparation methods depend on the particular reference source and the intended purpose. With medicinal plants, it is important to follow the stated proportions and not increase the amount of raw material on your own.

In what combinations was three-parted beggarticks used in folk practice?

Old sources describe three-parted beggarticks not only as a remedy on its own. It was included in various herbal combinations, especially when skin conditions were involved.

One description includes three-parted beggarticks combined with lemon balm, walnut, pine shoots, oak bark, willow, rye, thyme, and other plants. Other folk formulas included three-parted beggarticks together with burdock or calendula.

Combinations of three-parted beggarticks with pansy and lemon balm were also described. In old practice, a water decoction of such mixtures was given to children to drink and used for bathing in conditions then called scrofula.

This information belongs to folk medicine and does not mean that such multi-ingredient mixtures are suitable for self-treatment today.

How to prepare three-parted beggarticks?

Available descriptions of the plant mention infusions, teas, and water decoctions, but no universal dosage for preparing an infusion for home use is given. When preparing herbal remedies, it is necessary to follow the specific instructions for the medicinal raw material.

Herbal references describe the use of a water decoction of three-parted beggarticks. It was used internally and externally in traditional practice. For external use, the decoction was used in baths and washes.

How should three-parted beggarticks be harvested and stored?

For medicinal purposes, the herb of three-parted beggarticks — Herba Bidentis — is harvested.

According to herbal medicine references, harvesting is carried out in late summer, during budding and at the beginning of flowering. Leafy stem tops no longer than 15 cm long and large leaves are collected.

When harvesting later, it is recommended to take only side branches that have not yet begun to bear fruit. Darkened flower heads are not used for harvesting.

The herb is dried in the air. Other guides to harvesting medicinal plants state that herbs are generally collected during flowering, when they contain the maximum amount of active substances. Plants should be cut with scissors, a knife, or a sickle rather than pulled up by the roots.

After drying, the raw material should be cleaned of foreign matter. Store the dried herb as medicinal plant material in a dry place. Three-parted beggarticks does not form large dense stands in nature, so in some areas it can only be harvested in small batches. Cultivated plants can produce more plant material.

How can the herb be harvested without damaging the plant?

When harvesting medicinal herbs, it is important to consider not only the quality of the raw material but also the condition of the natural population. Three-parted beggarticks can be fairly widespread, but it usually does not form large continuous stands.

Scissors, a sickle, or a knife should be used to harvest the herb. The plant should not be pulled up by the roots. This method brings soil into the raw material, which reduces its quality. In addition, for plants that form stands, pulling them up by the roots can lead to their destruction.

For three-parted beggarticks, the herb itself is used as medicinal raw material. Depending on the harvesting period, this consists of leafy tops and side branches that have not yet begun to bear fruit.

Why does harvesting time matter?

For medicinal herbs, the flowering period is considered an important harvesting time because this is when the plant contains the maximum amount of active medicinal substances. For three-parted beggarticks, late summer, budding, and the beginning of flowering are specified more precisely.

If harvesting is done later, attention should be paid to the condition of the flower heads. The side branches should have no darkened flower heads and should not have begun fruiting. After cutting, the herb should be dried immediately. For three-parted beggarticks, the reference source specifically indicates air-drying.

How to find three-parted beggarticks abroad

Abroad, three-parted beggarticks (*Bidens tripartita*) may be found under different names. Dried aerial parts of the plant are most commonly sold.

• USA: Three-parted beggarticks, bur-marigold, trifid bur-marigold, water agrimony. Tinctures, liquid extracts, and cut herb may be available.
• Germany: Dreiteiliger Zweizahn, Wasserhanf. It is usually sold as loose dried herb (*Tee*).
• France: Bident tripartite, bident aquatique. Look for dried herb (*tisane*), and sometimes liquid extract.

Where to look:

• USA — online herb stores, specialized botanical and herbal shops;
• Germany — pharmacies (*Apotheke*), specialized herb shops (*Kräuterläden*), online pharmacies;
• France — herb shops (*herboristeries*), pharmacies upon request, specialized online organic and herbal stores.

Check the packaging for:

• the Latin name *Bidens tripartita*, to avoid confusing it with other *Bidens* species;
• the plant part: aerial parts or flowering tops (*Herba*);
• an indication that it is medicinal or food grade;
• organic certification, if this is important to you.

Sales regulations vary by country: in the USA the plant is sold as a dietary supplement, while in Germany medicinal tea (*Arzneitee*) may belong to a category with stricter quality requirements.

Three-parted beggarticks precautions and safety

Three-parted beggarticks has a long history of traditional use, but this does not mean it is completely safe for everyone. According to herbal medicine references, excessive and prolonged internal use of three-parted beggarticks, especially in children, may be associated with nervousness, changes in bowel movements, and lowered blood pressure. Modern safety data on Bidens tripartita are limited. There are not enough clinical studies to establish the safety of long-term use, optimal doses, and possible risks with certainty.

People who are sensitive to plants in the daisy family may experience allergic reactions. Three-parted beggarticks belongs to this family. Reliable data on drug interactions with three-parted beggarticks preparations are insufficient. The absence of confirmed interactions does not mean that they are impossible. Herbal remedies can affect the action of some medicines.

During pregnancy and breastfeeding, medicinal use of three-parted beggarticks is not recommended because of insufficient safety data. There is also insufficient clinical data for children, so its use should be discussed with a specialist.

It should also be kept in mind that the long-term toxicity of the plant in humans has not been adequately studied. Experimental animal data cannot be directly applied to humans.

When to see a doctor

Any unusual reaction from the body deserves attention. If signs of an allergic reaction, worsening of your condition, or other unwanted symptoms appear after using the plant, you should see a doctor. Pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers should consult a specialist before using medicinal herbs. If a person takes medication, has chronic conditions, or is planning long-term use of herbal remedies, it is better to discuss the decision to use the herb with a doctor.

Particular caution is needed when using herbs in children. Even plants traditionally used in children require a sensible approach and supervision.

Boris Wydoff — naturopath and author, Ph.D. in nutrition. For over fifty years I have helped people restore health through nutrition, cleansing and the power of the mind — in Europe, America and Asia. About the author →

Read next

All medicinal herbs by topic →

All articles by Dr. Boris Wydoff’s method →