Hardhack

April 8th, 2008

Botanical Name: Spiraea tomentosa (LINN.)
Family: N.O. Rosaceae
C0mmon Names: Hardhack, Meadow-sweet, White-leaf, Silver-leaf, Steeple-bush, Whitecap.
Synonyms: Steeple Bush. White Cap. White Leaf. Silver Leaf. Douglas spiraea
Parts Used: Leaves, root, flowers.
Habitat:Low, moist ground, roadside ditches, swamps. Canada. New Brunswick, Nova Scotia to the mountains of Georgia westward.

Description: Indigenous shrub, with leaves ovate, lanceolate, serrate, greenish-white and downy. The rose-coloured flowers are in panicles underneath.

This plant is a small shrub, about 3 or 4 feet in height, with several simple, straight, round, ferruginous-tomentose, hard, brittle stems.Purple loosestrife is an erect, herbaceous, perennial wetland weed that is commonly found along waterways and other wetland habitats. It was introduced from Europe during the late 1800s.

Leaves: Purple loosestrife leaves are 2-5 inches (5-12 cm) long and narrow with a rounded or heart-shaped base, and smooth-edged. The stalkless leaves are arranged opposite or alternate along the stem, and lower leaves often form a whorl around the stem.

Stems: One of the more recognizable features of purple loosestrife is its square-shaped stems. They are five- or six-sided (you can feel the edges of the stem when you roll it between your fingers), woody, and can be either smooth or covered with downy hairs. Stems have short, slender branches and evenly spaced nodes. Mature plants have up to 30 flowering stems, which can reach a height of 5-9 feet (1.5 to 3 m). Dead stems persist through the winter and often decay slowly over several years, and new shoots are produced each spring from buds on the persistent, woody rootstock.

Flowers: The inflorescence of purple loosestrife is a spike of numerous, showy, reddish-purple or magenta flowers set in clusters (Figure 3b). Each flower measures about 0.6-0.8 inches (15-20 mm) across, has five to seven petals, and a small, yellow center. Flowering occurs from mid-June to September, depending on location.

Seeds: Seeds are produced in rounded capsules about 0.24 inches (6 mm) in length. The capsules open to release more than a hundred tiny, light brown seeds about the size of poppy seeds (Figure 3c). Water, wind, wildlife, and humans easily spread the lightweight seeds that are shed throughout the winter. Purple loosestrife is a prolific seed producer; a single mature plant can produce several million seeds. When purple loosestrife densities are high, billions of seeds are produced per acre. Seed viability is greater than 90 percent and seeds can remain viable in the soil for many years.

Douglas spiraea or hardhack is a deciduous shrub from 1-2.5 m in height. In open areas, the new growth consists of many thin, vertical, unbranched stems. The stems are less than 1 cm thick, brittle, with many old leaf nodes that give it a knobby appearance. The new bark is a shiny brown to purple-brown. Older branches have thin, shredding bark.The leaves are simple with pinnate venation and alternate in appearance on the stems. They are oval to oblong in shape with toothed margins from the midpoint to the tip, and range from 4-6 cm in length. The upper leaf surfaces may appear dark green or glaucous, while the undersides range from slightly hairy to woolly and light in color.

The inflorescence is an elongated, densely flowered spike or panicle of pink flowers from 6-20 cm long. The flowers have 5 pink to rose colored petals, the petals each orbicular-elliptic to obovate in shape and 1-5-2 mm long. The seed heads remain intact throughout the winter, leaving a distinct, dark brown cluster at the terminus of the stems.

Constituents: The root is said to contain gallic and tannic acid, and, when freshly dug, some volatile oils.

Medicinal Action and Uses:Diuretic, digestive aid, respiratory

Hardback has been found an excellent astringent in summer complaint of children, diarrhoea, and other diseases requiring this class of remedies, and is less offensive to the stomach than most agents of this kind. It has likewise proved efficient as a tonic in cases of debility, convalescence from diarrhoea, dysentery, etc., and to improve the digestive functions. Passive hemorrhages, and menorrhagia have been treated with it, while as an injection good results have been obtained from its use in gleet and leucorrhoea. It is generally given in infusion, the dose being 1 or 2 fluid ounces. A very elegant extract, not inferior to catechu, may be made by carefully evaporating an infusion made by percolation, and which may be given in doses of from 2 to 20 grains. A tincture, well representing the virtues of spiraea, may be prepared from 8 ounces of the fresh leaves and bark to 1 pint of 76 per cent alcohol.

The flowers give feebly the medicinal action of salicylic acid and are used in decoction for their diuretic and tonic effect.

The root and leaves are astringent and useful in diarrhoea when there are no inflammatory symptoms.

Dose for diarrhoea, 30 to 60 minims of the fluid extract.

Click to see:-> Collinsonia canadensis

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider

Resources:
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/h/hardha02.html
http://www.invasive.org/weeds/loosestrife/ch1.html
http://www.henriettesherbal.com/eclectic/kings/spiraea.html http://ghs.gresham.k12.or.us/science/ps/nature/basin/5petal/rose/spiraea/hardhack.htm