Prickly Ash – Overall stimulant

Prickly Ash – Overall stimulant (Xanthoxylum americanum) Pure Herbs Liquid Extract used Historically for Overall stimulant, cardiac stimulant, alterative, deobstruent (dissolves obstructions), antiseptic, sialagogue (moistens dry mouth), nervine

Prickly Ash – Overall stimulant Common Names: Yellow Wood, Toothache Bark Suterberry, Pellitory Bark Northern Prickly Ash, Prickly Ash.

Prickly Ash – Overall stimulant Parts Used: Bark and berries.

Prickly ash comes from the plant family of the Rutaceae genus. The perennial plant grows as either a shrub or a tree that can grow up to 26 feet in height. The plant has dark brown branches with prickles that are up to a half of an inch long—thus the name prickly ash.

The twigs of the prickly ash shrub/tree have a strong smell, mimicking that of lemon peel. The small leaf buds are red and woolly, and greenish-yellow flowers appear in spring before their dark green leaves emerge. In late summer the fruit ripens, turning from its original green color to reddish-brown.

Bodily Influences: The action of Prickly Ash is an overall stimulant.  Stimulants should not be abused, such as with coffee. Prickly Ash is not a neuro-whip like excessive coffee, but an agent to swallow up fatigue produced by lactic and uric acids (waste acids that cause fatigue). This produces renewed vigor and alertness as if a person had just had a good sleep.

The action is slower than Cayenne, but within minutes, the effects are distinctly noted. The stimulating activity is not overshadowed by the calming effect on the nerves. In problems of paralysis, syphilis, skin disorders and lymphatic engorgement, the deobstruent properties of Prickly Ash make it an effective agent for clearing and correcting those afflictions. In the overrelaxed condition of the female system and under functioning tissue, these are traded for new tone and efficiency. Prickly Ash Pure Herbs Liquid Extract should not be overlooked for asthma and cold extremities or colic, diarrhea and dropsy (fluid retention).

References: Dr. Alexander Greenfield, “Herbs Medicinal;” Dr. John R. Christopher, “School of Natural Healing.”

Health Benefits of Prickly Ash