| Description | Common Prickly-Ash (Zanthoxylum americanum) is an aromatic, spiny, thicket-forming deciduous shrub or small tree whose leaves resemble an ash with prickles. |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | (zan-thoo-zi-lum)(a-mer-KA-num) |
| Plant Type | Trees Deciduous, shrubs native |
| Hardiness Zone | 3-7 |
| Sunlight | full or partial sun |
| Moisture | Moist to dry-mesic conditions. |
| Flowers | Yellow-green dioecious flowers occur in axillary clusters. |
| Fruit | Red to black two-valved capsules with small, lustrous black seeds. They go from green to red to brown. These are found on the female plants. |
| Leaves | The green ash-like leaves are pinnately compound, lustrous dark green above and pubescent below. |
| Stems | Many pairs of stout prickles are found at the nodes. Has an aromatic lemon scent. |
| Roots | The root system produces underground runners, forming clonal colonies of varying size. |
| Dimensions | 5-25 feet growing as a small tree or shrub. |
| Native Site | Habitats include upland woodlands, bottomland woodlands, savannas, wooded ravines, thinly wooded bluffs, edges of shady seeps, stream banks in wooded areas, thickets, pastures, and fence rows. |
| Cultivar Origin | Introduced in 1740. |
| Misc Facts | When crushed, the stems, leaves, and fruit all have a lemon fragrance. This plant is seldom used as a landscape plant. |
| Author's Notes | I remember the first time I saw this plant. I was walking down a trail at the edge of a wooded area. At this time, the plants were loaded with red fruit. |
| Notes & Reference | #01-Manual of Woody Landscape Plants (Michael Dirr), #63-How to recognize Shrubs (William Carey Grimm), #153-Illinois Wild Flower (www.illinoiswildflowers.info), #144-Missouri Botanical Gardens website (www.missouribotanicalgarden.org),#274-Site Authors' observations |
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