LATIN NAME: CIMICIFUGA RACEMOSA

COMMON NAME: Black Cohosh

In the dappled shade of the North American woodland, the black cohosh grows as a stately, herbaceous perennial with the tall, divided leaves on the dark stems and the long, elegant, bottlebrush-like spikes of small, white, fragrant flowers rising above them in the midsummer. It steadily establishes a rounded crown, eventually 5-10 metres tall. Full sun brings out its best, in deep, fertile ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The black cohosh holds a well-earned place in the studies of the North American woodland medicinals, its dark, knotted rhizome keeping it in view in the work on the traditional herbal preparations and the shaded-border perennials of the temperate garden. The research follows the way the tall white spires rise above the divided leaves, the fragrant flowers draw the bees and the beetles, and the seed biology of this stately woodland perennial.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

In the woodland border, the black cohosh raises the slender white spires through the soft, filtered light and scents the late-summer air. The rhizome has a long history in the herbal traditions of the region, the flowers feed the pollinators of the shade, and the plant makes the fine woodland-garden specimen, the tall accent and the moist-border perennial. It is a plant for the cool, leafy, sheltered corner of the garden.

To grow the Black Cohosh from seed, sow the seeds in pots of leafy compost and give them a warm then cool spell.

Sow the seeds in pots of leafy compost and give them a warm then cool spell, and keep the young plants in the sheltered, shaded spot. The white spires rise in the later summer.

LATIN NAME: Actaea racemosa

COMMON NAME: Black Cohosh, Black Bugbane, Fairy Candle

The black cohosh is a stately and handsome plant of the eastern American woodlands, and its tall, branching candelabra of white bloom and its large, divided leaves have made it a beloved plant of the shade garden. The species develops an upright, columnar form, around sixty centimetres high. It is a species of the buttercup family, native to the eastern North America, from the extreme south of the Ontario to the central Georgia, and west to the Missouri and the Arkansas, and it grows in the variety of the habitats, while it is known as the black cohosh, the black bugbane, the black snakeroot, the rattle-top or the fairy candle, and it is a stately plant of the shade garden.

The black cohosh belongs to the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae, and it is a species of flowering plant, native to the eastern North America, from the extreme south of the Ontario to the central Georgia, and west to the Missouri and the Arkansas. Growth leads to an upright, leafy clump, up to a metre tall.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The black cohosh has a genuine and distinguished place in both chemical and horticultural research. It has been studied in the chemistry of the natural products and in the pharmacology, since the roots and the rhizomes contain a range of the compounds, and researchers have examined their content and their potential biological activity, while the plant has a long history of use in the traditional medicine of the Native Americans, and its chemistry has drawn attention in the international natural-product press as a subject of continuing research, and the plant is best appreciated as a subject of the traditional medicine and the research rather than a casual home remedy. The plant has also been studied in the horticulture, since it is a stately and handsome plant of the shade garden, prized for its tall, candle-like clusters of bloom, and researchers have examined its cultivation, its growth and its value in the woodland and the shade garden, while the tall, branching candelabra of the plant has drawn attention in the international gardening press as a stately plant of the shade. The species has also been studied in the ecology, since it is a native of the eastern American woodlands, and its growth and its role in the woodland community have been examined. For a plant of such stature and such history, the black cohosh has a rich and distinguished record of research.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

Ecologically, the black cohosh is a stately plant of the eastern American woodlands. Its tall, branching clusters of white bloom feed the bees and the butterflies, and its large, divided leaves give cover, while it is a valued presence in the woodlands and the shade gardens of the eastern North America.

Its economic value is real and historic. The roots and the rhizomes have a long history of use in the traditional medicine, and their chemistry has drawn attention in the international natural-product press as a subject of continuing research, while the plant is also a beloved plant of the shade garden, prized for its tall, candle-like bloom. For a grower, the black cohosh is a rewarding and stately plant, and for a gardener with a cool, shaded corner it brings tall, branching candelabra of white bloom. The seeds are easy to start — let them rest cool and damp for a while, then sow them in a pot of moist, rich, free-draining compost in a cool, shaded spot, keep them gently watered, and theyll be sprouting steadily, growing on into a stately, candle-flowered plant.

Actea racemosa/Black cohosh Cimicifuga racemosa Extracts from these plant materials are thought to possess analgesic, sedative, and anti-inflammatory properties. Today, black cohosh preparations (tinctures or tablets of dried materials) are used mainly to treat symptoms associated with menopause.