Planting the Future

BLOODROOT

Sanguinaria canadensis

PAM MONTGOMERY

My first encounter with bloodroot was in the woodlands of New York state. I was walking through the woods in the early spring and came across a small patch of exquisitely beautiful white flowers whose leaves were just beginning to form. I was so taken by these flowers that I stopped and sat down in order to observe them more closely. I had no idea what these stunning blooms could be. As I sat and looked at the delicate blossoms I was overcome with a deep peace. I closed my eyes and saw the Buddha sitting on a lotus blossom. This lovely little white flower reminded me of the many-petaled lotus. It wasn’t how it looked, but more the energy that emanated from it that struck me. I called it the northeastern lotus until I discovered that its common name was bloodroot.

Years later, while studying plant spirit medicine with Eliot Cowan, I journeyed to the spirit of Bloodroot. I found myself deep in a forest glade where there were very bright lights, almost blinding to the eyes. This was where the spirit of Bloodroot lived. She appeared to me as a very kind older woman dressed in a shimmering silver gown. She looked almost like Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. She had what seemed like a wand but it could also have been a walking stick. I asked her about the gifts that she offered to people. She said that her main gift was that of purity: She purified the blood, the emotions, and the spirit. She cautioned me to use her sparingly because her gift was so powerful. Her gift was to be used only in special cases. She then asked me if I wanted her to enter into me, to which, of course, I said yes. She touched me with her staff and I fell into an altered state of indescribable peace and clarity—purity of spirit.

Bloodroot is a member of the Poppy family, which in Latin is known as the Papaveraceae. It is an herbaceous perennial native to North America. The solitary flowers are among the first to appear in early spring, doing so before the leaves have fully opened. They are 1 to 2 inches across with anywhere from seven to sixteen petals. The leaves are unique in appearance and provide an easy way to identify bloodroot. They begin by protectively wrapping themselves around the flower bud. Once opened, they are palmate in shape with deep lobes grooved out of each. The edges are scalloped. The leaves can reach 8 inches across at maturity, and the entire plant can grow from 6 to 14 inches in height. The rhizome—from which bloodroot received its common name—is the medicinal part of the plant. When cut, the horizontal rhizome exudes a reddish orange juice. Bloodroot grows in moist, deciduous woods and woodland slopes.

Bloodroot’s name comes from the fact that the root exudes a red juice similar to the color of human blood. Other common names are Indian paint, tetterwort, red puccoon, red root, coon root, snakebite, and sweet slumber. Many Native tribes used the juice of the root to decoratively paint their skin for ceremony. A bachelor of the Ponca tribe would use bloodroot as a love charm by rubbing the root on the palm of his hand and then shaking hands with the woman he wished to marry. After five or six days, if the charm was successful she would be willing to marry him.

The juice was also used to dye cloth and baskets. Puccoon is the Native name for bloodroot; coon root is the white man’s distortion of this Native term. Bloodroot got the name tetterwort because it was used for skin infections, as well as ringworm, fungal growths, and warts. Tetter is an outdated term for blisterlike skin diseases such as herpes, ringworm, and eczema. The name sweet slumber likely comes from the fact that bloodroot is a member of the Poppy family and contains protopine, an alkaloid also found in opium, thus giving it mild narcotic effects. I can find no references to bloodroot’s use for snakebites in any of the literature; however, plants receive names for a reason. If you find yourself in the woods on a warm, sunny spring day and happen to surprise an eastern timber rattler sunning itself on a rock, don’t ignore the bloodroot that may be growing within reach if you are bitten.

The Delaware Indians revered bloodroot, chewing a bit of root daily to maintain general good health. Like many Native tribes, they used it for conditions of the blood, feeling that it was purifying in such cases. Iroquois women used bloodroot for many of their “particular problems,” as well as other problems associated with blood such as cuts, wounds, hemorrhages, and ulcers. Both the Potowatomi and Ojibwa squeezed the juice onto a lump of maple sugar, then let it melt in the mouth to treat sore throats much the way we use cough drops. N. R. Farnsworth notes, “Cherokee Indians employed extracts of this plant as a remedy for breast cancer as early as 1857, and it has been used empirically as a cancer remedy in Russia.” At the same time that Native peoples were using bloodroot for cancer, Dr. Fells, a nineteenth-century physician, was successfully treating cancer patients. “Dr. Fells mixed bloodroot, flour, water, and zinc chloride together and applied this paste to cancers. Twenty-five breast cancers were treated in this manner at Middlesex Hospital in London, and this therapy was more successful than surgery” (Bolyard, 1981).

Bloodroot was listed in the United States Pharmacopoeia from 1820 to 1910, and in the National Formulary from 1925 to 1965. It was classified as a stimulating expectorant, emetic, tonic, and alterative.

Sanguinaria canadensis received its Latin name from the word sanguine, which means “consisting of or relating to blood.” Sanguinarine, the plant’s predominant alkaloid (considered poisonous), can cause slight central nervous system depression and narcosis if taken internally. It also is known to disturb mitosis. At the same time, it has been found to have antimicrobial, anesthetic, and anticancer properties. Bloodroot is pharmacologically active, containing many other alkaloids, including alpha-allocryptopine, beta-allocryptopine, berberine, chelerythrine, chelilutine, chelirubine, coptisine, homochelidonine, oxysanguinarine, protopine, pseudochelerythrine, sanguidimerine, sanguilutine, and sanguirubine. The FDA has classified bloodroot as an unsafe herb. In large doses it causes burning in the stomach, paralysis, vomiting, faintness, vertigo, eye irritation, and, in James Duke’s experience, “tunnel vision after chewing a small bite of rhizome.” Regardless of its potentially toxic properties, Peter Good, in his Materia Medica Botanica, writes, “This plant is one of the most valuable medicinal articles of our country, and is already very generally introduced into practice. Few medical plants unite so many useful properties: but it requires to be administered with great care and skill, without which it may prove dangerous.”

Its most common use by Eclectic herbalists was in the treatment of bronchitis. It has stimulating properties and is expectorant, and at the same time has a relaxing action on the bronchial muscles. Its antispasmodic properties have made it useful as a cough remedy as well as an effective treatment for asthma, croup, and laryngitis. There are other indications of its use as an emmenagogue, in heart disease with weakness and palpitation of the heart, as a snuff for nasal polyps, and externally for various skin conditions including fungal growths, ulcers, and fleshy growths. It has fallen out of common use, most likely because of its potential toxic side effects, except as an escharotic salve for skin and breast cancers and as a useful plaque deterrent in mouth rinses and toothpastes. Even though bloodroot is primarily indicated for external use with cancer, I recall a conversation with Dr. Gary Glum (revivalist of the Essiac formula) during which he indicated that the original Ojibwa formula possibly contained bloodroot instead of turkey rhubarb root.

Several years ago I was in Montana with my friend Brooke Medicine Eagle. I showed her a patch of skin on my face that was red and had been so for quite some time. She encouraged me to put on it a salve called Compound X, which is known to have bloodroot as a main ingredient. Her brother had given it to her to use on a carcinoma on her nose. He had had much success himself using it on cows with ulcerations. Brooke told me she put this black salve on her nose and covered it with a Band-Aid. A week later she removed the Band-Aid; a black scab had formed over the application site. She removed the scab, put on more salve, and waited another week. When she removed the Band-Aid the second time, she found a small hole in her nose. She began to work at it and knead it. Eventually, a long, black, stringy substance came out of the hole in her nose. The carcinoma had shriveled. Within a couple weeks the hole closed, and only a tiny scar remained.

After hearing her story, I was game to try the salve. I applied it just as she had and left a Band-Aid on for a week. At the end of a week I took the Band-Aid off; a black scab had formed. I didn’t touch the scab, letting it fall off by itself. New pink skin was forming. After the skin healed, I realized I had missed a patch. I applied salve there, using more this time. When the skin healed there was a small white scar. Apparently, I had actually burned my skin. Other than this scar my skin remained clear for some time, and then the patch of red skin gradually reappeared. In thinking back, I wonder about all the variables. Perhaps I should have applied a cell proliferant such as comfrey to help regenerate healthy cells, or maybe I should have kept the skin from sun exposure until it had healed completely. One thing I do know is that more is not always better.

In his book Spontaneous Healing Andrew Weil reports a more successful outcome to the use of bloodroot salve. “On the second day of applying the paste (to a pigmented mole that had been enlarging), the skin around the base of the mole became inflamed, an obvious immune reaction, and John said it was quite sore. On the third day, the mole turned pale and began to swell. On the fourth day, it fell off, leaving a perfectly circular wound that healed quickly.”

More recently I have used bloodroot as one of the ingredients in mouth rinse that I make for myself. I have had a long history of bone loss and gum disease. I use the mouth rinse daily in a maintenance program to reduce plaque and strengthen gum tissue. Bloodroot is effective in vitro against oral bacteria that is known to cause plaque formation. It is a major ingredient in Viadent toothpaste and mouth rinse.

In veterinary medicine, bloodroot leaf is used to destroy botfly larvae on horses.

Bloodroot flowers are made into a flower essence by Kate Gilday of Woodland Essence. See her description of this flower’s gifts on page 57.

Bloodroot’s other uses are primarily as a dye plant and for body painting. Using bloodroot as a dye works best on wool and silk. You can obtain a range of colors, depending on whether you use a mordant or not. To obtain an orange color use no mordant at all; a mordant of alum and cream of tartar leaves a rust color; tin creates a reddish pink shade. For best results use the root of bloodroot fresh-harvested in the fall.

The Native American custom of painting the body with bloodroot is being resurrected these days, too. Many young people are turning to body painting as an outward expression that is much less permanent than tattooing. My most recent experience with this art form was with Nance Dean, an apprentice of mine, in 1999. She had chosen bloodroot as her plant ally for the duration of the apprentice program. At our closing ceremony each apprentice presented his or her plant ally. Nance’s presentation included elaborate decoration of her skin with the fresh juice of the bloodroot rhizome. She proceeded to paint everyone’s skin, leaving us looking more like an aboriginal tribe than middle-class white Americans.

Bloodroot can be prepared in many ways. Traditionally, it was decocted by placing 1 teaspoon of dried rhizome in 1 cup of cold water and bringing it to a boil. Then it was left to steep for ten minutes. Drink 1 teaspoon three to six times a day. Bloodroot may be tinctured by using the spring or fall fresh-harvested rhizome. Chop the rhizome and add it to 50 percent dilute grain alcohol. An average dosage of tincture is 1 to 2 ml (1 ml equals approximately 2 5 drops) three times a day.

There are many cautions against using large doses of bloodroot. One woman friend of mine reported nausea and spaced-out feelings after ingesting one dropperful (30 drops) of bloodroot tincture. My recommendation would be to stay on the low end of the dosage range (10 drops three times per day in a little water) until you determine your sensitivity to the herb.

Bloodroot can also be dried and powdered. Taken as a dried powder, an average dosage is 10 to 30 grains (a grain is 0.002083 ounce). Bloodroot may be made into an oil by slow heat extraction in olive oil. Melt beeswax in the oil to bring the mixture to a salve consistency. As an escharotic salve, bloodroot powder is blended with lard to make a thick paste for external application. The proportions are approximately 1 ounce of powdered root to 3 ounces of lard. The fresh root poultice may be directly applied to skin eruptions and cancerous lesions.

Bloodroot is hardy to Zone 3 and likes a soil temperature of 60-70 degrees for best germination. It prefers partial shade but can grow in full sun. Ideally, the soil will be a moist, well-drained, rich, sandy loam. You can easily cultivate bloodroot from seeds, but it must be planted fresh; you thus need to watch vigilantly for seed maturity (usually midsummer to fall). If you do let the seeds dry out, the germination rate decreases significantly. Germination is usually in the spring after one or two seasons. Richo Cech of Horizon Herbs reports, “The seed has an eliasome [fatty protruberence] which attracts ants to carry it away to their nests. Then, the ants remove the eliasome and discard the [still viable] seed, which then has a chance to grow at some distance from its mother.” Propagation of bloodroot can also be accomplished by rhizome division. Break off the side shoots and replant immediately to avoid root rot. Plant the bud facing upward ½ inch deep. Covering with well-decayed leaf mulch enhances growth.

Harvest bloodroot rhizomes and roots in fall after the leaf has died back, or in very early spring at the onset of leaf emergence. Bloodroot should be laid out to dry on screens in a well-ventilated and very dry room where absolutely no moisture can get back into the plant material after the drying process has begun. Bloodroot is highly susceptible to rot and will deteriorate quickly if not dried in a timely manner and then stored in an airtight container. Do not cut the rhizome and root into pieces for drying; leave them whole. The precious juices exude profusely from the plant when it is cut.

UpS RECOMMENDATIONS

• Use cultivated resources only.

• As an alternative, celandine may be used. Also, for respiratory issues, skin conditions, and antimicrobial action, rosemary is a good substitute.

The lush carpets of bloodroot that once existed in the Northeast are vanishing. You still find occasional large stands, such as in the Adirondack Park of New York state. I really don’t know why the plant is disappearing. I doubt that it is from overharvest, since bloodroot is an herb used with caution; only the experienced herbalist feels comfortable with its application. Even though it is used in commercial dental products, it is still not commonplace because of discrepancies in clinical trials. Could this be one of our native plants that is being lost to a population explosion or perhaps environmental pollutants? Only further investigation can answer this question. Thankfully, in the right conditions bloodroot does well under cultivation, and it makes a beautiful garden flower, too. In order to allow our wild populations to reestablish themselves, avoid plants from wild sources.

I recall my first encounter with bloodroot years ago and the breathtaking beauty of its flower. I was so hungry for flowers after the long, cold winter. Now I anxiously await bloodroot’s arrival each spring, and the promise of renewal that it brings.

Bolyard, Judith L. Medicinal Plants and Home Remedies of Appalachia. Springfield, 111.: Charles C. Thomas, 1981.

Elliott, Doug. Wild Roots: A Forager’s Guide to the Edible and Medicinal Roots, Tubers, Corms, and Rhizomes of North America. Rochester, Vt.: Healing Arts Press, 1995.

Grieve, Mrs. Maude. A Modern Herbal. Vol. 1. New York: Dover Publishing, 1971.

Hoffmann, David. Therapeutic Herbalism. Correspondence course. Sebastopol, Calif.: author.

Kowalchik, Hylton, et al. Rodale’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs. Emmaus, Penn.: Rodale Press, 1987.

Leung, Albert, and Steven Foster. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics, 2d ed. Glen Rock, N.J.: John Wiley and Sons, 1995.

Moerman, Daniel. Geraniums for the Iroquois. Algonac, Mich.: Reference Publications, 1981.