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Common Name: Button Eryngo

General Information

Eryngium yuccifolium is a Evergreen Perennial up to 1.00 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a medicine..

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

Eastern N. America - Connecticut to Florida, west to Texas and Minnesota

Habitat

Dry to moist open woods, thickets and prairies[].

Properties

Medicinal Rating
Habit	Evergreen Perennial
Height	1.00 m
Pollinators	Bees, Flies, Beetles
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Requires a well-drained soil and a sunny position[]. Prefers a light sandy soil but tolerates most soil types including lime and poor gravels[].
Plants should be put in their final position whilst small since they resent root disturbance[].
Where this species is found growing wild in N. America, it is an indicator of native prairie[].

Edible Uses

None known

Medicinal

The plant is diaphoretic, diuretic, emetic (in large doses), expectorant and febrifuge{46, ].
A decoction of the roots has been found useful in cases of exhaustion from sexual depletion, with loss of erectile power, seminal emissions and orchitis[]. A tincture of the roots is used in the treatment of female reproductive disorders[].
The pounded roots are used as a diuretic[]. An infusion of them is used to reduce fevers[]. Chewing the root increases the flow of saliva[].
The plant is used as an antidote to snakebites[]. The roots are chewed and applied as a poultice to the bite[, ].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in early autumn on the surface of a well-drained compost in a cold frame[]. The seed can also be sown in spring. It usually germinates in 5 - 90 days at 20°c. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Division in early spring or autumn. Take care since the plant resents root disturbance[].
Root cuttings in autumn or winter[].