Common Name:

General Information

Zanthoxylum bungeanum is a deciduous shrub or small tree that can grow 3 - 7 metres tall.
The plant is often harvested from the wild and is also often cultivated in parts of China for its fruit. This is a source of Sichuan pepper, much used as a flavouring and also having medicinal applications.

Known Hazards

The plant is toxic[]. No more details.

Botanical References

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Range

E. Asia - China (widespread from the northeast and central China to the south).

Habitat

Waysides and thickets; at elevations up to 2,000 metresa[]. Found in a wide range of habitats; at elevations up to 3,200 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Deciduous Shrub
Height	6.00 m
Pollinators	Insects
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Zanthoxylum bungeanum is widespread in China, being found in the cold temperate regions of northeast and northcentral China, and extending southwards to the subtropical zones of Guangxi (hardiness zones 5 - 9).
Prefers a good deep well-drained moisture retentive soil in full sun or semi-shade[, , ].
A dioecious species - both male and female forms must be grown if fruit and seed are required.
Flowers are formed on the old wood[].

Edible Uses

Seed - used as a condiment, a pepper substitute[]. Highly prized, especially in Sichuan where it is widely used as a pepper-like flavouring (Sichuan pepper)[, ]. The fruit is rather small but is produced in clusters which makes harvesting easy[]. Each fruit contains a single seed.

Medicinal

The fruit is anaesthetic, anthelmintic, aromatic, astringent, carminative, diuretic, emmenagogue, stimulant, sudorific, vasodilator and vermifuge[, ]. It is pulverised then mixed with water for internal application in the treatment of chills and pains in the abdomen, vomiting, cold-damp diarrhoea and dysentery, ascariasis-caused abdominal pain and moist sores on the skin[].

The pericarp is anaesthetic, anthelmintic, antibacterial and antifungal[]. It is effective against the pork tapeworm, Taenia solium, and is also used in the treatment of gastralgia, dyspepsia, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, ascariasis and dermal diseases[].
The pericarp contains geraniol. This lowers the blood pressure, is mildly diuretic in small doses but in large doses inhibits the excretion of urine; it also increases peristalsis of the abdomen at low doses though inhibits it at large doses[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe in the autumn. Stored seed may requires up to 3 months cold stratification, though scarification may also help[]. Sow stored seed in a cold frame as early in the year as possible. Germination should take place in late spring, though it might take another 12 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out in early summer.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame.
Root cuttings, 3cm long, planted horizontally in pots in a greenhouse. Good percentage[].
Suckers, removed in late winter and planted into their permanent positions[].