American Beautyberry

Parts Usually Used

The fruit is eaten raw. The roots, leaves and stems

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

The fruit is juicy, sweet, fleshy, slightly aromatic[123]. The fruit is about 6mm in diameter. It has a lavender bloom color. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Late spring, Mid spring. Included in the Red List of Threatened Plants Status. 8 m (6ft) at a slow rate. It is in flower from June to July. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs).

Where Found

American beautyberry is native to the southern United States. The native range of C. americana extends from Maryland to Florida, west to Texas and Arkansas, and also Mexico, Bermuda, the Bahamas and Cuba. Prolific in the wild, the shrub is also popular in ornamental landscaping. It’s known for showy clusters of bright purple berries that begin to ripen in the summer and are an important food source for many species of birds.

Found in rich woods and thickets.

Medicinal Properties

This plant has antibacterial, antiviral, astringent, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and diuretic (root bark) properties. Astringent and cooling, beautyberry is useful to help treat bleeding in the lungs and stomach. The bark of various species of Beautyberry has been tested for antibacterial activity and findings indicate that it targets certain strains of bacteria such as Methicillin-resistent Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Bacillus cereus, Salmonella typhimurium, and many strains of cyanobacteria (blue-green algae).

Modern practices also use Beautyberry to treat herpes simplex. A handful of studies have been done to confirm that Beautyberry extracts may actually prevent the replication of herpes simplex and polio viruses.

Legends, Myths and Stories

The leaves of the Beautyberry also have a long folk history as bug repellent dating back to use by the indigenous tribes of the south. These claims have been confirmed in studies conducted at the University of Mississippi. Three repellent compound chemicals were extracted during a 12-month study: callicarpenal, intermedeol, and spathulenol. The research concluded that all three chemicals repulse mosquitoes known to transmit yellow fever and malaria.

It is considered more effective than DEET without the problematic toxins. The simplest way to benefit from the plant’s repellent properties is to pick some leaves and rub them on your skin. As always, just do a skin patch test to ensure you are not allergic. The berries are an important food source for squirrels, armadillos, raccoons, wood rats, gray foxes, opossums, white-tailed deer, and several types of birds including cardinals, woodpeckers, bobwhite quails, mockingbirds, robins, towhees, and brown thrashers.

It has no major pests but caterpillars will sometimes snack on the leaves. Early 20th-century farmers placed fresh, crushed beautyberry leaves beneath horse and mule harnesses so the plant’s oils could repel biting bugs. S. Department of Agriculture’s research division isolated beautyberry compounds effective in repelling biting insects. One, callicarpenal, proved to be as effective as DEET in fighting mosquitoes.

Other tests found beautyberry compounds also repelled ticks and fire ants. According to Chemist Mark “Merriwether” Vorderbruggen at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, “My kids and I love to nibble on beautyberries this time of year,” he says. “Raw, they have a slight medicinal taste, but when cooked into a jam or jelly, they really shine. ”

Uses

Historically, a decoction of beautyberry root bark was used as a diuretic, while the leaves were traditionally employed for dropsy. Teas brewed from the roots were administered for stomach aches, dysentery, indigestion, gas, and mild diarrhea, particularly among Southeastern Native American tribes such as the Choctaw, Creek, Koasati, and Seminole. A combined tea made from both the roots and the berries was traditionally used for colic.

Several Native American traditions also incorporated the leaves, roots, and branches into sweat baths intended for rheumatism and fevers. Externally, folk practitioners applied preparations of the bark and stems to address itchy skin. In Mexican agricultural traditions, leaf extracts were utilized against certain plant-harming fungi.