Sassafras albidum
| Sassafras albidum | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 5 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-7.3 |
| Cross Pollinated | |
| Height: | 82' |
| Width: | 49' |
| Blooms: | Late Spring-Early Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Sassafras albidum (common name: sassafras)
Propagation: Seed - best sown as soon as ripe in a cold frame[1]. Stored seed requires 4 months cold stratification at 4°c[2]. It is best sown as early in the year as possible. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as possible and grow them on in the greenhouse. One report says to harden off the plants as soon as possible[3], but young plants are frost-tender[4] and so we recommend growing them on in the greenhouse for their first winter and then planting them out in early summer. Give the young trees some protection for at least their first winter outdoors[K].
Root cuttings, taken from suckers, 1 - 2cm long taken in December. Plant horizontally in pots in a greenhouse[3].
Suckers in late winter. Plant straight out into their permanent positions[1].
Cultivation: Requires a deep, fertile, well-drained, lime-free, near neutral soil in sun or light shade[4][1]. Does well in a woodland garden[5], especially in a sheltered position along the edge[1].
The plant is tender when young, the young shoots of older trees can also be damaged by late spring frosts[4][6].
A very ornamental plant[7] with a wide range of uses, it is occasionally cultivated and often gathered from the wild[8]. All parts of the tree contain essential oils and give off a pleasant spicy aroma when crushed[9]. The stem bark is highly aromatic, more so than the wood. The root stem bark is the most pleasant of all[10]. The flowers have a spicy perfume[10].
Trees are long-lived, moderately fast-growing and disease-free in the wild[11][9]. They can begin flowering when only 10 years old and good seed crops are usually produced every 2 - 3 years[9]. The trees spread by root suckers and can form thickets[9].
Although some flowers appear to be hermaphrodite, they are functionally either male or female and most trees are dioecious[9]. Both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Range: Eastern N. America - Maine to Ontario, south to Florida and Texas.
Habitat: Deciduous woodlands and thickets on rich sandy well-drained soils[12][13][14][15]. Found on moist soils[16].
Edibility: Leaves - raw or cooked. The young leaves can be added to salads whilst both old and young leaves can be used as a flavouring and as a thickening agent in soups etc[17][18][19][13][16][20][21]. They have a mild aromatic flavour[K]. The leaves are often dried and ground into powder for later use[16][14][21]. The young shoots have been used to make a kind of beer[22].
The dried root bark can be boiled with sugar and water until it forms a thick paste[21]. It is then used as a condiment[21]. The root and the berries can also be used as flavourings[19][23].
Winter buds and young leaves - raw[13][21].
A tea is made from the root bark, it is considered to be a tonic[24][18][19][13]. The tea can also be made by brewing the root in maple syrup, this can be concentrated into a jelly[21]. A tea can also be made from the leaves and the roots. It is best in spring.
A tea can be made from the flowers[17].
Medicinal: Sassafras has a long history of herbal use. It was widely employed by many native North American Indian tribes who used it to treat a wide range of complaints, valuing it especially for its tonic effect upon the body[25]. It is still commonly used in herbalism and as a domestic remedy.
The root bark and root pith are alterative, anodyne, antiseptic, aromatic, carminative, diaphoretic, diuretic, stimulant and vasodilator[22][26][27][15]. A tea made from the root bark is particularly renowned as a spring tonic and blood purifier as well as a household cure for a wide range of ailments such as gastrointestinal complaints, colds, kidney ailments, rheumatism and skin eruptions[28][6][25].
The mucilaginous pith from the twigs has been used as a poultice or wash for eye ailments and is also taken internally as a tea for chest, liver and kidney complaints[28].
An essential oil from the root bark is used as an antiseptic in dentistry and also as an anodyne[29]. The oil contains safrole, which is said to have carcinogenic activity and has been banned from use in American foods - though it is less likely to cause cancer than alcohol[28]. In large doses the oil is poisonous, causing dilated pupils, vomiting, stupor, collapse and kidney and liver damage[22][6]. The oil has been applied externally to control lice and treat insect bites, though it can cause skin irritation[6].
Usage: An essential oil is obtained from the bark of the root[8] and also from the fruits[22]. One hundred kilos of root chips yield one litre of essential oil under steam pressure - this oil comprises about 90% safrol[10]. The oil is medicinal and is also used in soaps, the coarser kinds of perfumery, toothpastes, soft drinks etc[22][27][30][16]. It is also used as an antiseptic in dentistry[8].
A yellow dye is obtained from the wood and the bark[22][31]. It is brown to orange[31].
The plant repels mosquitoes and other insects[24][18].
Wood - coarse-grained, soft, weak, fragrant, brittle, very durable in the soil. It weighs 31lb per cubic foot and is used for fence posts and items requiring lightness[27][16][32][11].
Notes: We would need to buy in seed but could supply this in the year after it germinated.
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
In Leaf: Mid Spring-Mid Fall
Seed Ripens: Early Fall-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Dioecious
Known Hazards: The extracted essential oil is poisonous in large quantities[22][15]. The essential il contains safrole which is known to be carcinogenic and potentially harmful to the liver[33]. The essential oil has been banned as a food flavouring in America, even th
Also Known As: S. officinale. S. sassafras. Laurus albida.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Dirr, Michael and Charles Heuser. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press, 1987.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ Taylor, Jane. The Milder Garden. Dent, 1990.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Bown, Deni. Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopaedia of Herbs and Their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, 1995.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Elias, Thomas. The Complete Trees of North America. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1980.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Genders, Roy. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale, 1994.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Vines, Robert. Trees of North Texas. University of Texas Press, 1982.
- ↑ Lyndon, Merritt. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co, 1950.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Elias, Thomas. A Field Guide to North American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 McPherson, Alan and Sue McPherson. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press, 1977.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Mills, Simon. The Dictionary of Modern Herbalism.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 Sargent, Charles. Manual of the Trees of North America. Dover, 1965.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Riotte, Louise. Carrots Love Tomatoes. Garden Way, 1978.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Harris, Ben. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health, 1973.
- ↑ Kavasch, Barrie. Native Harvests. Vintage Books, 1979.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 21.4 21.5 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5 22.6 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Brouk, Bohuslav. Plants Consumed by Man. Academic Press, 1975.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Philbrick, Helen and Richard Gregg. Companion Plants. Watkins, 1979.
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Lust, John. The Herb Book. Bantam Books, 1983.
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- ↑ Weiner, Michael. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books, 1980.
- ↑ Schery. Robert. Plants for Man. Prentice Hall, 1972.
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 Grae, Ida. Nature's Colors. MacMillan Publishing, 1974.
- ↑ Hill, Albert. Economic Botany. The Maple Press, 1952.
- ↑ Diggs, George and Barney Lipscomb. Illustrated Flora of North Central Texas. Botanical Research Institute, 1999.