Editorial Policy

This page explains how Natugreens selects, writes, reviews, and corrects the botanical profiles it publishes. Because the site covers plants that many people associate with health, we follow criteria that put the accuracy of the information and the safety of our readers first, in every language in which the content is available.

What We Publish

Natugreens brings together profiles of plant species whose scientific names are accepted by the established taxonomic databases in botany. To be included on the site, each plant must correspond to a formally described and recognized species, which rules out common names without a reliable botanical identification, plants mentioned only in informal accounts, and legends that circulate without scientific support. When a single common name refers to different species, the profile points out that ambiguity instead of arbitrarily picking one of them.

The aim is to inform readers about the plant, not to guide its use. For that reason, some types of content are not published in any profile:

• diagnosis of diseases or health conditions;
• dosage, meaning recommended doses, frequency, or duration of use;
• ready-to-use preparation recipes for health purposes.

Anyone considering using a plant for health purposes should seek the guidance of a qualified professional, who can assess the individual case, any preexisting conditions, and possible interactions with medications.

Standard Structure of a Profile

Profiles follow a similar layout so that readers always find information in the same place. The order and level of detail vary with the species and the amount of material available, but a profile usually includes the following parts:

• Taxonomic identification: accepted scientific name, author of the description, botanical family, relevant synonyms, and main common names.
• Botanical description: growth habit, leaves, flowers, fruits, habitat, and geographic distribution.
• Recorded uses: traditional uses documented in different cultures and, where they exist, ongoing lines of scientific research, always labeled as such.
• Safety warnings: known toxicity, contraindications described in the literature, risk of confusion with similar species, and precautions for more vulnerable groups, whenever this information applies.
• References: the sources consulted, so that readers can verify for themselves what has been stated.

Language Criteria

No profile claims that a plant cures, treats, or prevents disease. The rule applies even when the original source uses more categorical terms, in which case the information is rewritten with the necessary caution or is left out.

So that readers know where each statement comes from, the text separates two types of information. The record of traditional use describes how the plant has been or is used by particular populations and comes with expressions such as “traditional use” or “folk use,” which make it clear that this is a documented custom, not proven efficacy. Scientific evidence refers to published studies and is presented with the degree of caution each study allows: a result obtained in the laboratory or in animals appears as “under study” or “investigated in preliminary research,” never as a confirmed benefit in people.

When the available knowledge is limited or contradictory, the profile says so openly, because acknowledging a gap is more honest than filling it with assumptions.

Images

Photographs and illustrations serve an identification purpose, so the selection favors images that clearly show the species’ characteristics. All of them are published at a standardized resolution to keep the same visual quality from one profile to the next, and no watermarked image is accepted. When an image comes from a photographer, a collection, or a public database, the credit appears in the caption itself, woven into the description of what the photo shows, so that the attribution is part of the text rather than sitting on its own at the foot of the image.

Updates and Corrections

Profiles are reviewed periodically, since botanical classification changes, new studies are published, and safety information may be updated. Each profile displays the date of its last revision, which lets readers know how recent the content they are reading is.

If you find an error, you can report it through the Contact page, indicating the profile and the passage in question and, if possible, the source that supports the correction. These messages are reviewed and may lead to corrections of four kinds:

• Factual: incorrect or outdated data about the plant, its occurrence, or its recorded uses.
• Linguistic: translation, wording, or terminology problems in any of the site’s languages.
• Safety: adding or adjusting warnings about toxicity, contraindications, or the risk of confusing species, handled as a priority.
• Taxonomic: changes to the scientific name, synonymy, or classification within the botanical family.

Commercial Content

Natugreens does not sell products and does not run a store. The site also does not publish affiliate links or sponsored content, and no plant appears here at the suggestion of brands or manufacturers. The site may display Google AdSense ads, which are selected and served automatically by Google and play no role in the choice of species or in the content of the profiles. The selection of species and the content of the profiles have no commercial motivation, which allows us to approach each plant solely on the basis of what is known about it.

Last revised: 2026-10-31