COHOSH--BLACK AND BLUE.
Black Cohosh.
Cimicifuga Racemosa (L.) Nutt.
Synonym--Actaea Racemosa L.
Pharmacopoeial Name--Cimicifuga.
Other Common Names--Black snakeroot, bugbane, bugwort,
rattlesnakeroot, rattleroot, rattleweed, rattletop, richweed,
squawroot.
Habitat and Range--Altho preferring the shade of rich woods, black
cohosh will grow occasionally in sunny situations in fence corners
and woodland pastures. It is most abundant in the Ohio Valley, but it
occurs from Maine to Wisconsin, south along the Allegheny Mountains
to Georgia and westward to Missouri.
Description of Plant--Rising to a height of 3 to 8 feet, the showy,
delicate-flowered spikes of the Black Cohosh tower above most of the
other woodland flowers, making it a conspicuous plant in the woods
and one that can be easily recognized.
[Illustration: Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga Racemosa) Leaves, Flowering
Spikes and Rootstock.]
Black Cohosh is an indigenous perennial plant belonging to the
same family as the Golden Seal, namely, the crowfoot family
(Ranunculaceae). The tall stem, sometimes 8 feet in height, is rather
slender and leafy, the leaves consisting of three leaflets, which are
again divided into threes. The leaflets are about 2 inches long,
ovate, sharp pointed at the apex, thin and smooth, variously lobed
and the margins sharply toothed. The graceful, spikelike terminal
cluster of flowers, which is produced from June to August, is from 6
inches to 2 feet in length. Attractive as these flower clusters are
to the eye, they generally do not prove attractive very long to those
who may gather them for their beauty, since the flowers emit an
offensive odor, which account for some of the common names applied to
this plant, namely, bugbane and bugwort, it having been thought that
this odor was efficacious in driving away bugs. The flowers do not
all open at one time and thus there may be seen buds, blossoms, and
seed pods on one spike. The buds are white and globular and as they
expand in flower there is practically nothing to the flower but very
numerous white stamens and the pistil, but the stamens spread out
around the pistil in such a manner as to give to the spike a somewhat
feathery or fluffy appearance which is very attractive. The seed pods
are dry, thick and leathery, ribbed, and about one-fourth of an inch
long, with a small beak at the end. The smooth brown seeds are
enclosed within the pods in two rows. Any one going thru the woods in
winter may find the seed pods, full of seeds, still clinging to the
dry, dead stalk, and the rattling of the seeds in the pods as the
wind passes over them has given rise to the common names
rattle-snakeroot (not "rattlesnake"-root), rattleweed, rattletop and
rattleroot.
Description of Rootstock--The rootstock is large, horizontal and
knotty or rough and irregular in appearance. The upper surface of the
rootstock is covered with numerous round scars and stumps, the
remains of former leaf stems, and on the fresh rootstocks may be seen
the young, pinkish white buds which are to furnish the next season's
growth. From the lower part of the rootstock long, fleshy roots arc
produced. The fresh rootstock is very dark reddish brown on the
outside, white within, showing a large central pith from which
radiate rays of a woody texture, and on breaking the larger roots
also the woody rays will be seen in the form of a cross. On drying,
the rootstock becomes hard and turns much darker, both internally and
externally, but the peculiar cross formation of the woody rays in
both rootstock and roots, being lighter in color, is plainly seen
without the aid of a magnifying glass. The roots in drying become
wiry and brittle and break off very readily. Black cohosh has a heavy
odor and a bitter, acrid taste.
Collection, Prices and Uses--The root should be collected after the
fruit has ripened, usually in September. The price ranges from 2 to 3
cents a pound.
The Indians had long regarded black cohosh as a valuable medicinal
plant, not only for the treatment of snake bites, but it was also a
very popular remedy among their women, and it is today considered of
value as an alterative, emmenagogue, and sedative, and is recognized
as official in the United States Pharmacopoeia.
Blue Cohosh.
Caulophyllum Thalictroides (L.) Michx.
Other Common Names--Caulophyllum, pappoose-root, squawroot,
blueberryroot, blue ginseng, yellow ginseng.
[Illustration: Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum Thalictroides).]
Habitat and Range--Blue Cohosh is found in the deep rich loam of
shady woods from New Brunswick to South Carolina, westward to
Nebraska, being abundant especially thruout the Allegheny Mountain
region.
Description of Plant--This member of the barberry family
(Berberidaceae) is a perennial herb, 1 to 3 feet in height, and
indigenous to this country. It bears at the top one large, almost
stemless leaf, which is triternately compound--that is, the main leaf
stem divides into three stems, which again divide into threes, and
each division bears three leaflets. Sometimes there is a smaller
leaf, but similar to the other, at the base of the flowering branch.
The leaflets are thin in texture, oval, oblong, or obovate and 3 to 5
lobed.
In the early stage of its growth this plant is covered with a sort of
bluish green bloom, but it generally loses this and becomes smooth.
The flowers are borne in a small terminal panicle or head, and are
small and greenish yellow. They appear from April to May, while the
leaf is still small. The globular seeds, which ripen about August,
are borne on stout stalks in membranous capsules and resemble
dark-blue berries.
Description of Rootstock--The thick, crooked rootstock of Blue Cohosh
is almost concealed by the mass of matted roots which surrounds it.
There are numerous cup-shaped scars and small branches on the upper
surface of the rootstock, while the lower surface gives off numerous
long, crooked, matted roots. Some of the scars are depressed below
the surface of the rootstock, while others are raised above it. The
outside is brownish and the inside tough and woody. Blue Cohosh
possesses a slight odor and a sweetish, somewhat bitter and acrid
taste. In the powdered state it causes sneezing.
Collection, Prices and Uses--The root is dug in the fall. Very often
the roots of Golden Seal or twinleaf are found mixed with those of
Blue Cohosh. The price of Blue Cohosh root ranges from 2 1/2 to 4
cents a pound.
Blue Cohosh, official in the United States Pharmacopoeia for 1890, is
used as a demulcent, antispasmodic, emmenagogue and diuretic.