Abstract: Understanding the correlation mechanism between the quality of Ligusticum chuanxiong and environmental factors and its spatial distribution pattern can provide a scientific basis for the ecological zoning and production layout optimization of L. chuanxiong. Based on multi-source data including effective components of L. chuanxiong, climatic factors and altitude, we used the generalized additive model to quantitatively analyze the relationship between the quality and environmental factors. We used the maximum entropy model to extend this relationship to the geographical space, and determined the potential distribution areas for high-quality L. chuanxiong with suitable environmental characteristics. The results showed that the spatial characteristics of high-quality L. chuanxiong areas differed obviously in Sichuan, mainly manifested as the highly-suitable area, the moderately-suitable area, and the poorly-suitable area. Among them, the highly-suitable area, which was concentrated in patches or spots, was approximately 3572.05 km², mainly distributed in the western edge of the Chengdu Plain (including Pengzhou, Shifang, Mianzhu, and Anzhou), the transition zone from the southwestern edge of the plain to the shallow hills (e.g., the area from Dayi to Dongpo), and scattered areas in Leshan. The moderately-suitable area was approximately 8850.16 km², which included not only the extending regions along the western edge of the Chengdu Plain, but also the southern extension of the plain and local areas such as Rong County-Weiyuan, Xuyuan-Cuiping-Pingshan. The poorly-suitable area was 38921.21 km², including parts of the Chengdu Plain extending to the southern and southwestern hilly areas of Sichuan. The cultivation of L. chuanxiong should be implemented with zonal planning, prioritizing the layout and development of highly-suitable areas as the core focus. For the moderately-suitable and poorly-suitable areas, the cultivation scale should be controlled, and environmental monitoring and production management should be strengthened.

Key words: Chinese herbal medicine, component-environment coupling, ecological suitability, generalized additive model, maximum entropy model