Red Baneberry
Actaea rubra

Family: Ranunculaceae

What it is like

Actaea rubra is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in) by 0.3 m (1ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 3. It is in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs). Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in full shade (deep woodland) or semi-shade (light woodland). It prefers moist soil.

Height (m): 0.5

Where it is found

Moist shady areas, mostly in deciduous forests but also in mixed coniferous forests, open pine or spruce woodlands, swales, stream banks and swamps from sea level to 3500 metres.

N. America - Alaska to California and eastwards to Newfoundland and Philadelphia.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 0

Medicine

Rating: 2

The whole plant, but especially the root, is analgesic, antirheumatic, galactogogue and rubefacient. The plant was often used medicinally by North American Indian tribes, though modern users should be aware of the plants potential toxicity. A tea made from the root is used as an appetizer, in the treatment of stomach pains, coughs, colds, menstrual irregularities, post partum pains, to increase milk flow and as a purgative after childbirth. Great caution should be employed if using this plant internally, the rootstock is a violent purgative, irritant and emetic.

Analgesic: Relieves pain.

Antirheumatic: Treats rheumatism.

Appetizer: Improves the appetite

Emetic: Induces vomiting.

Galactogogue: Promotes the flow of milk in a nursing mother.

Purgative: A drastic laxative causing a cleansing or watery evacuation of the bowels, usually with a griping pain.

Rubefacient: A counter-irritant and external stimulant, it produces inflammation and redness of the skin.

Other

Rating:

How it is grown

Tolerates most conditions, but prefers a humus-rich moist soil in light shade doing well amongst shrubs and in light woods. Also succeeds in denser shade. Plants are hardy to at least -20°c. A very ornamental plant. Actaea rubra is part of a circumboreal complex and is very similar to the black-fruited European species A . spicata (L.) with which it is sometimes considered conspecific. The western North American plants of A . rubra have been called A . arguta and were distinguished on the basis of their smaller berries, more pubescent leaves, and narrow, more dissected leaflets. Those distinctions, however, are weak; specimens from the West often have fruits and leaves similar to those of plants from the East. A greedy plant, inhibiting the growth of nearby plants, especially legumes.

Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame or outdoors in a moist shaded seedbed. The seed has a limited viability, it can also be sown in spring in a cold frame but germination rates may be poor. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer of the following year. Division in March or October.

Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Dappled Shade; not Deep Shade;

Habit: Perennial

Hardiness: 3-7

Growth:

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: Full shade, semi-shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

All parts of the plant are toxic, apparently acting upon the heart.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

A. arguta. Nutt.