Triosteum perfoliatum
| Triosteum perfoliatum | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 3' |
| Width: | 2' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Mid Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Triosteum perfoliatum (common name: wild coffee)
Propagation: Seed - we have no information for this species but suggest sowing the seed in a cold frame in early spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in spring[1].
Cultivation: Succeeds in a light humus-rich soil in part shade[1].
Succeeds in the wild or woodland garden[1].
Range: Eastern N. America - Massachusetts to Alabama, Kentucky and Kansas, west to Nebraska.
Habitat: Rich soils[2]. Shady positions in forests on limestone soils[3].
Edibility: The dried and roasted seeds have been used as a coffee substitute[4][5][6]. Opinions on the taste vary wildly[5].
Medicinal: A decoction of the leaves is diaphoretic[6]. It is used in the treatment of fever and ague[5][3].
The roots are diaphoretic, diuretic, laxative, pectoral and stomachic[6][7]. In large doses they are emetic and cathartic[6]. An infusion of the root has been used to treat severe colds, pneumonia, irregular or profuse menses, painful urination, stomach problems and constipation[6][7]. The infusion has also been used as an aid to putting on weight for both adults and babies[7].
A poultice of the roots is applied to snakebites, sores and felons[6].
An infusion of the plant has been used for soaking sore feet. An ooze from the plant has been used as a wash for swollen legs[7].
The rhizome contains an alkaloid and has been used as a cathartic[3].
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Britton, Nathaniel and Addison Brown. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada. Dover Publications, 1970.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Weiner, Michael. Earth Medicine, Earth Food. Ballantine Books, 1980.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Coffey, Timothy. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File, 1993.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Foster, Steven and Billy Tatum. Medicinal Plants of Eastern and Central North America. Houghton Mifflin, 1990.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.