Rhamnus cathartica
Common Name: Common Buckthorn.
Family: Rhamnaceae.
Known Hazards: The fruit is purgative but not seriously poisonous. Other parts of the plant may also be poisonous.
Habitats: Fen peat, scrub, hedges, ash and oak woods, on calcareous often dry soils.
Range: Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to N. Africa and W. Asia.
Physical Characteristics
Rhamnus cathartica is a deciduous Shrub growing to 6 m (19ft) by 3 m (9ft). It is hardy to zone 3 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to June, and the seeds ripen in October. The flowers are dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required) and are pollinated by insects. The plant is not self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. and can grow in very alkaline soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil. Plants For A Future cannot take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Medicinal Actions: Cathartic; Depurative; Diuretic; Laxative; Purgative.
Both the bark and the fruit of common buckthorn have been used for their purgative effect upon the body, however they can be rather violent in their action and so are rarely used in human medicines. The berries, harvested when fully ripe, are cathartic, depurative, diuretic, laxative and violently purgative. About 8 - 15 of the mature fruits, chewed before breakfast, are a strong and effective laxative for adults, they should not be used by children. An infusion of the not quite mature fruits is gentler in its action. Use with caution, in large doses the fruit can cause vomiting and violent diarrhoea.
Other Uses
A green dye is obtained from the immature fruit. Mixed with gum arabic and limewater, it makes a green pigment used in watercolour painting. Yellow, orange and brownish dyes can also be obtained. The colours are rich but fugitive. A yellow dye is obtained from the bark. It has been used to colour paper and maps. Often grown as an informal hedge, it is also amenable to trimming. Wood - hard, handsome with a marble-like grain. Used for small turnery.
Cultivation
Succeeds in any reasonably good soil. Prefers a dry or moist calcareous soil in sun or light dappled shade. This species is hardy to at least -15°c. Plants regenerate well after cutting or burning but young plants are rather prone to frost damage when grown in an exposed position. Plants are resistant to cattle grazing but young plants can be damaged by rabbits.
Plants have a very shallow root system. This species often bears the aecidospore stage of ‘crown rust’ of oats so it should not be grown near cereals. The species in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus. A good bee plant and a main food plant for the brimstone butterfly. Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required.
Propagation
Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed will require 1 - 2 months stratification at 5°c and should be sown as early in the year as possible in a cold frame. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle, and grow them on in the greenhouse or cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood of the current year’s growth, autumn in a frame. Layering in early spring.
