Pilewort
Parts Usually Used
Whole plant
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Pilewort is a native North American annual plant; the thick, succulent, grooved stem grows from 1-8 feet high and bears alternate, lanceolate, acute irregularly dentate leaves, 2-8 inches long, that are petioled near the bottom of the plant and clasping near the top. Whitish, brush-shaped flower heads grow in loose terminal clusters from July to October. The plant has a disagreeable odor and taste.
The fruit, an achenium, is oblong and hairy. Somewhat resembles Sow thistle. Also called fireweed (E. ) of the Evening-primrose family. Native Americans poulticed peeled root for burns, skin sores, swelling, boils.
Where Found
Grows in fields, woods, waste places, and burned-over areas from the Atlantic coast westward to Saskatchewan, Nebraska, Texas, and Mexico.
Medicinal Properties
Alterative, astringent, cathartic, emetic, tonic
Legends, Myths and Stories
Another plant is known as pilewort (Ranunculus ficaria), used to treat piles, constipation, and varicose veins. If taken internally, do not use without medical supervision.
Uses
Historically, herbalists utilized pilewort for diarrhea, cystitis, dropsy, colon complaints, tonsillitis, hay fever, and fever, as well as considering it a blood purifier. Folk tradition strongly associated the plant with the management of hemorrhoids, and it was noted to cause vomiting in excessive amounts. External applications were employed for muscular rheumatism and sciatica.
Additionally, traditional practitioners prepared tinctures from the fresh whole plant to address diarrhea, hemorrhage, metrorrhagia, and orchitis.
How Sold
Capsules
Warning
In large doses it produces vomiting. Take only for one week at a time. Take the capsules with a swallow of milk.
Bibliography
, 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014, first printed by the United States Government Printing Office, Washington, in 1928, this Dover edition 1974 The Complete Medicinal Herbal , by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY.
copyright 1974. Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023