Buttercup
Parts Usually Used
Roots and leaves, sometimes flowers and/or fresh plant. Only the fresh plant is poisonous and effective medicinally.
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Ranunculua acris: Erect annual or perennial, 2-3 feet tall. Leaves palmately divided into 5-7 stalkless, lance-shaped, toothed segments. Flowers are shiny; golden yellow within, lighter outside; blooms May to September. Fruits are flat, smooth, with distinct margins. Ranunculus bulbosus: Bulbous buttercup is a perennial plant. The hairy stem grows 6-8 inches high above the ground and swells out into a solid, fleshy bulb, or corm, under the ground.
Small, fibrous roots grow from the bottom of the bulb. The long-petioled basal leaves are three-parted, with the leaflets three-lobed. The upper leaves are pinnate, with narrow leaflets. Several golden-yellow flowers appear on each stem from May to July. Ranunculus sceleratus: An annual or biennial plant, the fibrous root sends a stiff, hollow, glabrous, branched stem to a height of 6-18 inches.
The leaves are thick, light green, shiny, and palmately lobed. Pale yellow flowers appear between May and November.
Where Found
S. but mostly absent from the prairies. S. and some Pacific coastal areas. , the western coastal states, and Canada.
Medicinal Properties
Counterirritant, anodyne, antispasmodic, diaphoretic; external rubefacient, epispastic
Legends, Myths and Stories
There are 250 species of buttercup that are native in cold climates throughout the Untied States and Europe.
Uses
Historically, herbalists applied the fresh leaves externally as a rubefacient for rheumatism, gout, arthritis, and neuralgia, relying on their irritating effect on the affected area. American Indian traditions utilized poultices of the root for conditions such as eczema, warts, boils, and abscesses, and also placed it directly onto warts. Additionally, historical practitioners utilized a tincture of the plant, administered either internally or applied topically, for shingles and sciatica.
Warning
Extremely acrid, causing intense pain and burning of mouth, mucous membranes; blisters skin. External application may cause blisters and lead to ulceration with prolonged use. Internal overdose may cause gastroenteritis. Avoid use. Similar warning applies to other buttercups, and many other plants in the buttercup family. Marsh crowfoot is the most active of the three buttercup species; mere contact with the skin can cause irritation and blistering.
Do not use internally. Do not use without medical supervision.
Bibliography
The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973 Indian Uses of Native Plants , by Edith Van Allen Murphey, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1958, print 1990 Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A.
, Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023