American Spikenard

Aralia racemosa

American Spikenard American Sarsaparilla Indian Root Parts used Uses Habitat and cultivation Constituents

American spikenard is a perennial bush growing up to ten feet in height with large leaves, small greenish white flowers, and red or purple berries.

Spikenard was a popular herb among American Indians, who gathered its pleasantly scented roots for a variety of medicinal uses. Herbalists record that the Cherokees drank spikenard tea for backache and that the Shawnees used it to treat gas pains, coughs, asthma, and chest pains. Other tribes gave the tea to women in labor to make childbirth swifter and less painful. The Micmacs reportedly applied a salve of spikenard to cuts and wounds, while the Ojibwas used the root in a poultice for healing broken bones.

Early settlers added spikenard to their own herbal medicine shelf and found even more uses for it. Juice from the dark purple berries and oil from the seeds were poured into ears to cure earache and deafness. Medical practitioners in the 19th century prescribed the root to treat gout, rheumatism, syphilis, and other diseases in which it was deemed necessary to "purify the blood."

Closely related to spikenard is wild sarsaparilla, Aralia nudicaulis, whose root is similarly aromatic and was likewise used for medicinal purposes-as a tonic, stimulant, and perspiration inducer. Wild sarsaparilla was also brewed into a root beer.

PARTS USED

Root, rhizome.

USES

Native Americans ate the aromatic spikenard roots and young leaves in soups and other dishes. Related to ginseng, wild sarsaparilla and other species of spikenard were used as flavorings in teas and root beer. Another plant called spikenard and related to valerian was found in perfumes in ancient times. According to the New Testament, Mary Magdalene applied it to Jesus' feet.

This herb's current use for coughs and skin conditions is based on traditional applications. Native Americans of various groups used American spikenard and related species for a variety of ailments, including as a tea for backaches. Decoctions of the roots and bark helped women with menstrual problems or prolapsed uteruses. People of both sexes used spikenard for conditions that in colonial times were called humors in the blood. They also treated pulmonary and respiratory infections such as coughs and tuberculosis with spikenard. Poultices of American spikenard were put on wounds, swellings, and burns. American spikenard contains a volatile oil, tannins, and diterpene acids. It was included in the National Formulary of the United States from 1916 to 1965.

HABITAT AND CULTIVATION

The species Aralia racemosa is found from central Canada to Virginia, but other types of spikenard grow elsewhere in North America.

CONSTITUENTS

American spikenard contains volatile oil, tannins, and diterpene acids.