Senega Snakeroot
Parts Usually Used
Root
Description of Plant(s) and Culture
Senega snakeroot is a perennial plant, 6-18 inches tall; the hard, crooked, snake-like rootstock produces 15 to 20 or more smooth, erect stems which grow from 6-18 inches high. The alternate, lanceolate leaves are sessile or almost so and come to a fairly sharp point. Small, pea-like, white or greenish flowers grow in dense terminal spikes, 5 sepals, 3 petals and the capsules are small, 2 celled and 2 valved; from May to June.
Where Found
Native to the rocky woods and hills of eastern North America, growing as far sough as North Carolina and Arkansas.
Medicinal Properties
Antispasmodic, cathartic, diaphoretic, emetic, expectorant, stimulant
Biochemical Information
Polygalic acid, virginic, pectic, tannic acids, fixed oil, gum, albumen, salts, alumina, silica, magnesia and iron
Uses
Herbalists historically utilized this plant primarily as an expectorant for respiratory complaints, believing it relaxed the mucous membranes. The Seneca people reportedly introduced the plant to European settlers, having traditionally chewed the root into a mash to apply topically to snakebites. Native American traditions also employed a tea brewed from the root as an emetic, to promote sweating, to regulate menstruation, and for complaints such as colds, croup, pleurisy, iritis, rheumatism, coughs, and convulsions, while using poultices of the root for swellings.
Later historical herbal practices expanded the use of the root tea to conditions such as asthma.
Warning
Large doses cause vomiting and diarrhea; an overdose is poisonous. Use with medical supervision.
Bibliography
Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants , by Steven Foster and James A. , Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000 The Herbalist Almanac , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1988, fifth printing, 1994 American Folk Medicine , by Clarence Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, 1973 The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY.
copyright 1974. , 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014, first printed by the United States Government Printing Office, Washington, in 1928, this Dover edition 1974 Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023