It grows up to 1.5 m (5 ft) tall, rarely to 2 m (7 ft). The stems are erect, usually unbranched, with pinnately dividedleaves up to 20 cm long, the leaflets with irregularly toothed to toothless margins. The flowers are produced from June to August, and are 2.5–5 mm diameter with a five-lobed corolla, sweetly scented, pale pink, occasionally white, grouped in both compound and secondaryclusters.[4][5][6]
It is native from Iceland south to Portugal, north to central Scandinavia, east to European Russia, and southeast to Iran.[1][2] The plant is typically found in wet and dry meadows, wet woodlands, and marshes;[4][5] plants adapted to drier chalk grassland soils are sometimes distinguished asV. o. subsp.collina.[7]
The flowers attract many fly species, especiallyhoverflies of the genusEristalis.[8] The plant is consumed as food by thelarvae of someLepidoptera (butterfly and moth) species, including thegrey pug.
Valerian is considered aninvasive species in many locations outside its natural range, including the US state ofConnecticut where it is officially banned,[9] and inNew Brunswick, Canada, where it is listed as a plant of concern.[10]
The name of the herb is derived from the personal nameValeria and the Latin verbvalere (to be strong, healthy).[11][12] Other names used for this plant includegarden valerian (to distinguish it from otherValeriana species),garden heliotrope (although not related toHeliotropium),setwall (though this originally meantzedoary, from which it is etymologically derived) andall-heal (which is also used for plants in the genusStachys).[13]Valeriana phu is also known as garden valerian.[14]Valeriana rubra, red valerian, often grown in gardens, is also sometimes referred to as "valerian", but is a different species. Valerian is also calledcat's love due to itscatnip-like effects.[13]
Crudeextracts of valerian root may havesedative andanxiolytic effects; however, evidence for this is mixed and debated. It is commonly sold as adietary supplement to promote sleep. A dry ethanol extract of valerian root has been recognised as a medicine for adults with mild symptoms by theEuropean Medicines Agency.[15] It produces acatnip-like response in cats.
The chief constituent of valerian is a yellowish-green to brownish-yellow oil present in the dried root, varying in content from 0.5 to 2.0%. This variation in quantity may be determined by location; a dry, stony soil yields a root richer in oil than moist, fertile soil.[25]
Valerian is a commontraditional medicine used for treatinginsomnia. Some sources describe its effectiveness for this purpose as weak, ineffective, inconclusive, or low.[13][18][26][27] Two meta-analyses concluded that valerian may improve sleep quality.[28][29] A 2006meta-analysis concluded that there was insufficient evidence to determine valerian's effectiveness or safety foranxiety disorders.[30] Another meta-analysis found that valerian may be safe and effective for improving sleep and reducing anxiety and that inconsistent results in past research could possibly stem from variability in extract quality.[31]
In contrast, theEuropean Medicines Agency (EMA) approved thehealth claim that valerian can be used as a traditional herb to relieve mild nervous tension and to aid sleep; the EMA'sCommittee on Herbal Medicinal Products recognises valerian dryethanolextract as a well-established herbal medicine for relieving mild nervous tension and improving sleep, based on multiple randomised, controlled, double-blind clinical trials, expert reports, sleep-EEG studies, and traditional use demonstrating gradual improvements in sleep and mild nervous tension symptoms.[15][32]
Germany'sCommission E, the scientific advisory board responsible for evaluating the safety and efficacy of herbal substances, has approved valerian as an effective mild sedative.[33][34]
Oral forms are available in both standard and nonstandard forms. Standardised products may be preferable considering the wide variation of the chemicals in the dried root, as noted above. When standardised, it is done so as a percentage of valerenic acid or valeric acid. For commonly used doses, valerian isgenerally recognised as safe in the U.S.[13]
As an unregulated product, the concentration, contents, and potential contaminants in valerian preparations cannot be easily determined.[13][18] Because of this uncertainty and the potential for toxicity in thefetus andhepatotoxicity in the mother, valerian use is discouraged during pregnancy.[13][36][37] Headache anddiarrhea have occurred among subjects using valerian in clinical studies.[13]
Valerian root is acat attractant, containingattractantsemiochemicals in a way similar tocatnip, which can affectcat behaviour.[39] Its roots and leaves are one of three alternatives for the one-third of domesticated or medium-sized cats who do not feel the effects of catnip.[39][40] Valerian root has also been reported to be attractive to rats and used to attract members of the familyCanidae to traps.[41]
Valerian has been used intraditionalherbal medicine since at least the times of ancient Greece and Rome.[18]Hippocrates described its properties, andGalen later prescribed it as a remedy for insomnia.[18] In medieval Sweden, it was sometimes placed in the wedding clothes of a bridegroom to ward off the "envy" of theelves.[42] In the 16th century,Pilgram Marpeck prescribed valerian tea for a sick woman.[43]
John Gerard'sHerball, or Generall Historie of Plantes, first published in 1597, states that his contemporaries found valerian "excellent for those burdened and for such as be troubled withcroup and other like convulsions, and also for those that are bruised with falls". He says that the dried root was valued as a medicine by the poor in the north of England and the south of Scotland, such that "no brothes, pottages or phisicalle meates are woorth [worth] anything if Setwall [valerian] were not at one end".[44][45]
The 17th-centuryastrological botanistNicholas Culpeper thought the plant was "under the influence of Mercury, and therefore hath a warming faculty". He recommended both herb and root, and said that "the root boiled with liquorice, raisons and aniseed is good for those troubled with cough. Also, it is of special value against the plague, the decoction thereof being drunk and the root smelled. The green herb being bruised and applied to the head taketh away pain and pricking thereof."[45]
^Although many sources list "catinine" as an alkaloid present in extracts from the root ofValeriana officinalis, those sources are incorrect. The correct spelling is "chatinine". It was discovered by S. Waliszewski in 1891. See:
S. Waliszewski (15 March 1891).L'Union pharmaceutique, p. 109. Abstracts of this article appeared in: "Chatinine, alcaloïde de la racine de valériane".Répertoire de pharmacie, series 3, vol. 3,pp. 166–167;Archived 2013-06-19 at theWayback Machine (April 10, 1891).
^Isovaleramide does not appear to be a naturally occurring component of valerian plants; rather, it seems to be an artifact of the extraction process; specifically, it is produced by treating aqueous extracts of valerian with ammonia.[17]
^Isovaleric acid does not appear to be a natural constituent ofV. officinalis; rather, it is a breakdown product that is created during the extraction process or by enzymatic hydrolysis during (improper) storage.[20]
^Balandrin MF, Van Wagenen BC, Cordell GA (1995). "Valerian-derived sedative agents. II. Degradation of Valmane-derived valepotriates in ammoniated hydroalcoholic tinctures".Journal of Toxicology: Toxin Reviews.14 (2):88–252.doi:10.3109/15569549509097280.
^abcde"Valerian". Office of Dietary Supplements, US National Institutes of Health. 15 March 2013. Retrieved2 April 2018.
^Wills R, Shohet D (July 2009). "Changes in valerenic acids content of valerian root (Valeriana officinalis L. s.l.) during long-term storage".Food Chemistry.115 (1):250–253.doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2008.12.011.
^abMarder M, Viola H, Wasowski C, Fernández S, Medina JH, Paladini AC (2003). "6-methylapigenin and hesperidin: new valeriana flavonoids with activity on the CNS".Pharmacol Biochem Behav.75 (3):537–45.doi:10.1016/S0091-3057(03)00121-7.PMID12895671.S2CID37559366.
^Fernández S, Wasowski C, Paladini AC, Marder M (2004). "Sedative and sleep-enhancing properties of linarin, a flavonoid-isolated from Valeriana officinalis".Pharmacol Biochem Behav.77 (2):399–404.doi:10.1016/j.pbb.2003.12.003.PMID14751470.S2CID34347546.
^"Valerian". Botanical.com.Archived from the original on 2006-11-10. Retrieved2007-04-15.
^Leach MJ, Page AT (2015). "Herbal medicine for insomnia: A systematic review and meta-analysis".Sleep Med Rev (Review).24:1–12.doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2014.12.003.PMID25644982.
^European Medicines Agency.Final assessment report on Valeriana officinalis L., radix and Valeriana officinalis L., aetheroleum. EMA/HMPC/150846/2015. Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC), 2 February 2016, pp. 40–56.Accessed 20 May 2025.
^Bega D, Malkani R (2016). "Alternative treatment of restless legs syndrome: an overview of the evidence for mind-body interventions, lifestyle interventions, and neutraceuticals".Sleep Med. (Review).17:99–105.doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2015.09.009.PMID26847981.
^abGrieve, Maud (1971).A Modern Herbal: The Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk-lore of Herbs, Grasses, Fungi, Shrubs, & Trees with All Their Modern Scientific Uses. Vol. 2.
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