Fraxinella |
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| Common Name | Fraxinella |
| Scientific Name | Dictamnus albus |
| Also called Gas Plant, Bastard Dittany, Burning Bush, Diptam, Dittany, False Dittany, and White Dittany. Fraxinella is native to Europe and Asia and is found as far eastward as China. It is sometimes cultivated as a garden ornamental in the northern United States. The volatile, scented oil of the flowers gives off a vapor on summer evenings, and if a match is lit nearby, the vapour will flash. A decoction of the root is believed to relieve fever and stomach cramps, and a decoction of the root and seed is used to treat kidney and bladder stones, to bring on menstruation, and to alleviate hysteria. Tea brewed from the root, leaves, or seed was popular with the American colonists. CAUTION: Contact with the fraxinella plant can cause skin irritation if the skin is exposed to sunlight after contact. | |
| Plant | Perennial. A knobby, whitish root sends up round, downy, green and purple stems. The leaflets of dark green, shiny compound leaves are alternate, oval, and covered with glandular dots. The large, showy, rose, white, or red-purple flowers appear in June and July. |
| Height | 3 feet. |
| Soil | Moderately rich, somewhat light soil, deeply dug. |
| Exposure | Sun or partial shade. |
| Propagation | Newly ripe seeds planted 1 inch deep in fall during the third or fourth lunar phase. The following spring, seedlings will appear. Also can be propagated by 3-inch root cuttings in spring, although this is usually not as successful. |
| Care | Keep seedlings well weeded. When they are 2 years old, they may be transplanted. Flowers will not appear until the fourth year. |
| Part used for Tea | Root, leaves, seed. |
| Taste | The white-flowered variety has a lemony fragrance and taste. The pink-flowered variety is less lemony but has an added taste of almond and vanilla. |
| How to Brew | LEAVES, BY INFUSION: The leaves are best when dried, using 1 teaspoon of dried leaf to 1 cup of boiling water. Steep to taste. Refreshing. SEEDS OR ROOTS, BY DECOCTION: Use 1 tablespoon of crushed or powdered seed or root to 2 cups of water. Boil down to 1 cup. This method produces a more medicinal tea. |
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