Editorial policy
How profiles are sourced, written, checked and corrected — and why traditional use is kept separate from horticulture.
The policy exists to answer one question: why should a reader trust a growing note on this site? The short answer is that every profile names its sources, separates observation from tradition, and states the limits of the advice.
Sourcing standards
Horticultural facts are checked against at least two independent references where possible. The preferred sources are extension services, botanical gardens, national horticultural societies and peer-reviewed reviews. Commercial seed catalogues are used for cultivar descriptions, not for safety claims.
Safety statements are checked against public-health and regulatory sources: NCCIH, MedlinePlus, EMA herbal monographs and national poison-centre guidance. If a safety question is unsettled, the profile says so and recommends professional advice rather than choosing a side.
AI assistance and editorial review
Profiles are drafted with AI assistance from a structured brief. The Herb Ledger editorial team checks the draft against the cited sources, rewrites generic passages, removes unsupported claims and verifies that the safety block is specific to the plant. AI is not used to invent sources, quotes, study results or dosage information.
The team is an editorial identity, not a claim of clinical expertise. We do not present the site as medically reviewed by a clinician; when a question needs clinical judgement, the page directs the reader to a qualified professional.
Each profile is expected to contain information that is specific to that plant: a named lookalike, a part-specific harvest signal, a propagation quirk or a real garden failure mode. If a draft could be produced by swapping the plant name in another profile, it is sent back.
Traditional use, clearly labelled
Many of these plants have long histories in Chinese, European or Ayurvedic practice. Those histories are worth recording accurately. They are not evidence that a plant works, and they are never presented as a treatment recommendation.
Traditional-use paragraphs use language such as “appears in”, “has been described as” and “is traditionally grouped with”. They do not use “treats”, “cures”, “prevents” or “is safe for”.
Safety first
Where a plant has a known interaction, toxic part, pregnancy caution or serious lookalike, the caution appears in the profile itself. It is not relegated to a linked page. The site does not publish dose tables or home-treatment protocols for any plant.
Corrections and updates
Corrections are logged on the page with a new update date. Substantive changes — a changed hardiness rating, a new safety warning, a corrected harvest window — are noted in the page's revision line. Minor copy edits are made without a note.
To report an error, email [email protected] with the page, the sentence and a source. Reports with a citable source are prioritised.
Independence
No advertiser, seed company or supplement brand has editorial input. If affiliate links are added in future, they will be disclosed and will not determine which plants are included or how they are rated.
Last updated: 1 February 2026.