Black Cohosh

COMMON: Black Cohosh, Black snakeroot, Rattle root, Squaw root. Bugbane, American baneberry.

BOTANICAL: Cimicifuga racemosa

PRONOUNCED: simi-SIFF-few-guh race-see-MOH-suh

Click on the pic for a close up

HEIGHT LIGHT ZONE

3 ft. - 6 ft. Shade 3 - 9

BLOOMS COLOR

July - August White

Soil: Fairly rich, humusy, moist but well-drained.

Description: Perennial. A native of North America, it is called Black Snake Root to distinguish it from the Common Snake Root, Aristolochia serpentaria. Graceful and towering when in bloom, the small, creamy white flowers are supported on very tall stalks with a strong aroma. The leaves are thin, multi divided and a rich green. Spreads via a thick, hard, knotty rhizome. Although the blooming begins late July, the graceful spikes continue to open through the fall. The foliage is dramatic with deep green, compound leaves up to 18-inches long. It can tolerate considerable shade. A greedy plant which needs frequent fertilizing.

In The Garden: A graceful addition in the back of a shade garden where its white flowers seem like stars floating over other herbs. Can also be placed at the front of the bed as most of its height is a thin stalk.

Cultivation/propagation: Seed germination takes 2 to 4 weeks. Propagate by root division only in the spring.

Harvesting: The plant produces a stout, blackish rhizome (creeping underground stem), cylindrical, hard and knotty, bearing the remains of numerous stout ascending branches.
It is collected in the autumn after the fruit is formed and the leaves have died down, then cut into pieces and dried. It has only a faint, disagreeable odor, but a bitter and acrid taste.

Medicinal and Folklore: This plant was used by Native Americans for a myriad of problems, including headache (note the presence of salycilates... the forerunner of aspirin). It is still used in western medicine for tinnitus (ringing of the ears), and by herbalists to increase the intensity of uterine contractions during childbirth.
Black cohosh was introduced to the medicinal works in 1844 by Dr. John King for rheumatism and nervous disorders, and it became a favorite herb with the Eclectics medical practitioners. It was widely used to treat scarlet fever, whooping cough and smallpox.
Both the growing and the dried plant can be used to repel bugs and fleas
However, administration should not be a self-application, but should be monitored by a physician. Even moderate doses can affect the nervous system, induce vomiting, and lower the pulse.


Cultivation/propagation: Seed germination takes 2 to 4 weeks. Propagate by root division only in the spring.
Harvesting: The plant produces a stout, blackish rhizome (creeping underground stem), cylindrical, hard and knotty, bearing the remains of numerous stout ascending branches. It is collected in the autumn after the fruit is formed and the leaves have died down, then cut into pieces and dried. It has only a faint, disagreeable odor, but a bitter and acrid taste.
Medicinal and Folklore: This plant was used by Native Americans for a myriad of problems, including headache (note the presence of salycilates... the forerunner of aspirin). It is still used in western medicine for tinnitus (ringing of the ears), and by herbalists to increase the intensity of uterine contractions during childbirth. Black cohosh was introduced to the medicinal works in 1844 by Dr. John King for rheumatism and nervous disorders, and it became a favorite herb with the Eclectics medical practitioners. It was widely used to treat scarlet fever, whooping cough and smallpox. Both the growing and the dried plant can be used to repel bugs and fleas However, administration should not be a self-application, but should be monitored by a physician. Even moderate doses can affect the nervous system, induce vomiting, and lower the pulse.