Common Prickly-ash
Zanthoxylum americanum
Also known as: Toothache Tree
Suckering thorny shrub-tree, host plant for giant swallowtail butterfly (the largest in OH). Chewing the bark numbs the mouth — traditional toothache remedy. Sister to the source of Sichuan peppercorns, and the seed makes a similar traditional pepper substitute.
- Family
- Rutaceae
- Type
- tree
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 15–20 ft
- Spacing
- 10–15 ft apart
- Light
- sun
- Soil moisture
- moist
- Soil pH
- alkaline
- Bloom
- April
- Bloom colors
- white, green
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, butterflies, songbirds
- Landscape uses
- specimen, hedge or screen, erosion control
- Native states
- AL, AR, CT, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, SC, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV