Zanthoxylum schinifolium
Taxonomy and growth
- Family
- Rutaceae
- Genus
- Zanthoxylum
- Life cycle
- perennial
- Foliage
- deciduous
- Woodiness
- woody
- Height
- 4 m
- Fertility
- self sterile
- Flower type
- dioecious
Uses
Edible uses
Seed - cooked. It is used as a condiment, a pepper substitute[5]. Young leaves[2]. No more details are given.
- Product or use
- Condiment
- Plant part
- Leaves
Medicinal uses
Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.
The pericarp is anaesthetic, diuretic, parasiticide and vasodilator[6]. It is used in the treatment of gastralgia and dyspepsia due to cold with vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, ascariasis and dermal diseases[6]. It has a local anaesthetic action and is parasiticide against the pork tapeworm (Taenia solium)[6]. The pericarp contains geraniol. In small doses this has a mild diuretic action, though large doses will inhibit the excretion of urine[6]. There is a persistent increase in peristalsis at low concentration, but inhibition at high concentration[6]. The resin contained in the bark, and especially in that of the roots, is powerfully stimulant and tonic[11].
- Product or use
- Anaesthetic
- Product or use
- Diuretic
- Product or use
- Parasiticide
- Product or use
- Stimulant
- Product or use
- Tonic
- Product or use
- Vasodilator
Environment
- Range
- E. Asia - China, Japan, Korea.
- Light
- full sun
- Shade tolerance
- light shade
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- Zone 6+
- Soil textures
- sandy, loamy, clay
- Soil pH
- acid, neutral, alkaline
- Drainage
- well drained
- Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
- No
- Drought
- intolerant
Propagation
Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe in the autumn. Stored seed may requires up to 3 months cold stratification, though scarification may also help[4]. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as early in the year as possible. Germination should take place in late spring, though it might take another 12 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in early summer. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Root cuttings, 3cm long, planted horizontally in pots in a greenhouse. Good percentage[10]. Suckers, removed in late winter and planted into their permanent positions[4].
Cultivation
Prefers a good deep well-drained moisture retentive soil in full sun or semi-shade[1][3][7]. Flowers are formed on the old wood[8]. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required. Self-sown seedlings have occasionally been observed growing in bare soil in the shade of the parent plant[K].
References
F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00
Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00
Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981-00-00
Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press 1987-00-00 ISBN 0942375009
Wilson. E. H. and Trollope. M. N. Corean Flora. Royal Asiatic Society 1918-00-00
Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas. Institute of Chinese Medicine, Los Angeles 1985-00-00
Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Larkcom J. Oriental Vegetables John Murray 1991-00-00 ISBN 0-7195-4781-4
Ohwi. G. Flora of Japan. (English translation) Smithsonian Institution 1965-00-00
Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948-00-00
Sargent. C. S. Manual of the Trees of N. America. Dover Publications Inc. New York. 1965-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20278-X