Common Name:

General Information

Zanthoxylum rhoifolium is a semideciduous tree with a dense, spreading crown growing 6 - 12 metres tall. The straight, cylindrical bole can be unbranched for 3 - 4 metres and 30 - 40cm in diameter[]. The bole is armed with stout spines about 6mm long[].
The tree is sometimes harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine and also for its timber. A very ornamental plant, it provides good shade and can be used in landscaping, especially for urban street planting[]. It is a natural pioneer species, establishing in open places and providing a suitable habitat for rainforest trees to become established.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

S. America - all areas except the far south and Chile; C. America - Panama to Mexico; Caribbean - Trinidad, Grenada, St. Lucia, Windward Isles.

Habitat

Amongst low trees and shrubs of secondary forest growth at elevations from 450 - 1,050 metres[]. Slopes in the Atlantic rainforest and in semideciduous forests at higher elevations, usually in areas where the soil is well-drained[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Semi-deciduous Tree
Height	10.00 m
Pollinators	Bees, Insects
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Grows best in a sunny position[]. Grows well on nutrient-depleted soils[]. Established plants are drought tolerant[].
The plant responds well to coppicing and can survive forest fires by resprouting from the roots[].
A dioecious species, both male and female forms need to be grown if seed is required.

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The macerated bark, mixed with wine or rum, is used as a bitter tonic having anti-malarial and anti-blennorrhagic properties[].
A decoction of the trunk-bark is used as a hot bath to soothe venereal chancres, and to remedy eruptions of pimples on the legs of children[].

The inner bark is antispasmodic, bitter, febrifuge and stomachic[]. It is used in the treatment of dyspepsia and blennorrhagia[]. It is boiled with the leaves of the plant, and the water is drunk as an anti-pyretic[].

The roots are bitter[]. They are used in the treatment of toothaches[].

The plant contains various alkaloids including allocryptopine, candicine, magnoflorine and temberatine[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Zanthoxylum rhoifolium is a natural pioneer species. It is a common shrub that invades open ground in Amazonia, often being found in abandoned pasture where it grows quickly and provides suitable conditions for the establishment of other rainforest trees and shrubs[].

Other Uses

The pale greenish-yellow wood is lustrous; odourless, but with a slightly bitter taste; straight-grained; medium-textured; of medium weight[]. It is light in weight, hard, flexible, not durable when exposed to the weather or wet soils[]. It is inclined to be splintery and saws woolly, easy to work, takes a smooth finish[]. It is used in construction, cabinet making, general carpentry, making tool handles, cart bodies, oars etc[].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a lightly shaded position in a nursery seedbed or individual containers. Germination rates are usually low with the seeds sprouting after about 30 - 60 days[].

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