| Zanthoxylum americanum | |
|---|---|
| Zanthoxylum americanum at the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Sapindales |
| Family: | Rutaceae |
| Genus: | Zanthoxylum |
| Species: | Z. americanum |
| Binomial name | |
| Zanthoxylum americanum Mill. |
|
Zanthoxylum americanum, the Common Prickly-ash, Common Pricklyash, Common Prickly Ash or Northern Prickly-ash (also sometimes called Toothache Tree, Yellow Wood, or Suterberry), is an aromatic shrub or small tree native to central and eastern portions of the United States and Canada. It can grow to 10 meters (33 ft) tall with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 15 cm (6 in).[1] It produces membranous leaflets and axillary flower clusters.[1] The wood is not commercially valuable, but oil extracts from the bark have been used in traditional and alternative medicine, and have been studied for antifungal and cytotoxic properties.[1] The genus name is sometimes spelled Xanthoxylum.
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Originally described by Scottish botanist Philip Miller in 1768,[2] Zanthoxylum americanum is a member of the wide-ranging genus Zanthoxylum in the plant family Rutaceae, which includes many species with aromatic foliage. Miller, who spelled the name Xanthoxylum, described the plant in the eighth edition of his Gardeners Dictionary, as "grow[ing] naturally in Pensylvania [sic] and Maryland".[3]
The plant has pinnately compound leaves with 5-11 membranous leaflets. It has axillary flower and fruit clusters.[1] The buds are hairy. The dark green leaves are bitter-aromatic, with crenate margins.[4][1] The berries begin red[4] and turn deep blue to black,[5] with stalked fruit pods.[1] Flowers are dioecious, with yellow-green petals.[6]
Rare in the South, it is more common in the northern United States.[1] In the United States, it occurs in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and West Virginia; the species also occurs in Ontario and Quebec in Canada.[7] The species is listed as Endangered in Florida, Maryland, and New Hampshire; and as Special Concern in Tennessee.[7]
Butterflies that use Zanthoxylum americanum as a larval food source include the Thoas Swallowtail (Papilio thoas), Giant Swallowtail (P. cresphontes), and Spicebush Swallowtail (P. troilus).[4]
This plant was discovered by John Bartram in his travels and plant collecting excursions.
An oil extracted from the bark and berries of the prickly-ash (both this species and Zanthoxylum clava-herculis) is used medicinally.[1][5] The extract may act as a stimulant, and historic medicinal use has included use "for chronic rheumatism, typhoid and skin diseases and impurity of the blood..." as well as for digestive ailments.[5] Grieve states, "The berries are considered even more active than the bark, being carminative and antispasmodic, and are used as an aperient and for dyspepsia and indigestion; a fluid extract of the berries being given, in doses of 10 to 30 drops."[5] The bark has been chewed for toothaches, and a tea from the berries has been used for sore throats and as a diuretic.[8] As noted by Michael Dirr, in his Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, "Supposedly the stems and fruits were chewed by the Indians to alleviate toothache for the acrid juice has a numbing effect."
There have been some modern studies of the oil's constituents and antifungal properties[9] and cytotoxic effects.[10] [11]