Overgrowth of pond cattails is often viewed by the owners as an annoyance that needed to be gotten rid of. However, you just can’t come to a conclusion that cattail plants are good for nothing because of that. Invasive species and a noxious weed as it is in some places, this wetland plant can be quite versatile if you know how to make the best use instead of killing it. For instance, cattails, used for medicine, are good for a number of ailments, especially those accompanied with the symptom of bleeding. From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, Pollen Typhae (Puhuang)">Pollen Typhae (Puhuang) is its main medicinal part, which is traditionally used for the treatment of spitting out blood, nose bleeding, urinary bleeding, blood in the urine and in the stool, uterine bleeding, miscarriage prevention, promotion of lactation, retained placenta, and so on.

Cattails benefits
Cattails plant is also an edible crispy wild vegetable, especially the soft white part of cauloid and young part at the tip of cattail roots . For example, Nai Tang Pu Cai (milk soup of cattail) is a famous soup in Shandong Cuisine, one of the Eight Cuisines in China. This is a famous specialty of Jinan cuisine, which is based on the tender cattail plant that grows by the Daming Lake. As a matter of act, the popularity of this dish can be even dated back to as early as in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Thanks to its milky white color, crisp texture, and refreshing light flavor, it becomes a regular in high grade feasts. No wonder it enjoys the reputation as "the first soup of Jinan cuisine."

Cat tail plant is also an important raw material for manufacturing paper and rayon. Besides, its leaves are widely used to weaving shoes, fans, mats, baskets, and other useful crafts that are of high artistic and aesthetic values. And cattail wool, the hairs on the female inflorescence, is often used for stuffing pillows.

Thanks to its upright leaves and stout inflorescence, cattails also serve as one of ornamental flowers. Besides, its green leaf and unique spike is also a good background material for flower sight and waterscapes. For that reason, it is commonly used in embellishing ponds in garden and lakeside and building water features. What’s more, it can be planted as bonsai for courtyard layout and the spike of cattail is commonly considered cut flower material.

As mentioned above, cattails pollen is the main medicinal part, which is with cardiotonic and lipid-lowering effects. The cat-tail-pollen based compound preparations can dilate coronary artery, reduce lipid, and prevent and treat atherosclerosis. Hence, clinically it has a certain effect in the treatment of Coronary Heart Disease, Angina, and Hyperlipidemia. As a traditional Chinese herb, it has long been considered a good herb for activating blood and dissolving stasis, removing stasis to relieve pain, and inducing diuresis for treating Stranguria. In fact, it also works on lowering lipid to unclog arteries and treating hyperlipidemia. This is because this herb can inhibit lipid deposition in the arterial wall, thus effectively delay the process of Atherosclerosis, which in turn reduce total cholesterol, lower blood pressure, dilate blood vessels, and improve microcirculation.