Prickly ash is an aromatic, spiny, thicket-forming deciduous brier or baby timberline
that, as the accepted name suggests, resembles (particularly in leaf) an ash
with prickles. It is not an ash, however, but a affiliate of the citrus
ancestors (Rutaceae) and is carefully accompanying to the aswell annoying able
orange, Poncirus trifoliata. Prickly ash is a Missouri built-in plant that
about occurs on bluffs, altitude bouldered hillsides, accessible woods, clammy
ravines and thickets in a lot of of the State except for the Ozark arena
(Steyermark).
It is a
lot of generally apparent in the agrarian as an 8-10' alpine multi-stemmed
shrub. However, it will abound beyond and is occasionally apparent as a baby
timberline up to 25' tall. Compound, odd-pinnate, aphotic blooming leaves (to
1' long) accept 5-11 leaflets each. Stems and leaves accept aciculate prickles
to 1/2" long. Male and changeable flowers arise on extracted copse
(dioecious) in axillary clusters (cymes) on old wood. Flowers blossom in bounce
afore the leaves emerge. Flowers are greenish-yellow, ambrosial and
inconspicuous, but are absolutely adorable to bees. Changeable flowers accord
way to clusters of rounded, reddish-brown, berry-like fruits (follicles) which
complete in backward summer (1-2 agleam atramentous seeds per follicle).
Fruits
may be the best accessory feature. All locations of this plant (leaves,
flowers, fruit, bark and roots) are ambrosial (lemony fragrance). Sometimes
frequently alleged toothache timberline because Built-in Americans chewed the
bark or fruits (producing a algid effect) for abatement from toothache pain.
Built-in Americans aswell able a array of alleviative decoctions from the bark
and roots for analysis of such problems and fever, coughs, gonorrhea,
rheumatism and alien wounds. Formerly accepted as Xanthoxyum americanum.