Cascara

Rhamnus purshiana
  • Hul’qumi’num Name: q’ey’xulhp
  • Description:  Deciduous tree up to 5-12m tall. The leaves range glossy and green with deep veins. Flowers grow in umbrella-shaped clusters, yielding fruit that ripens to purplish-black
  • Habitat: Prefers wet sites, but can tolerate a range of conditions.
  • Harvest: Flowers bloom May-June with fruit ripening August-September
  • Edibility: Berries are edible but not delicious.
  • Fun Fact: Bark can be brewed into a tea to produce a strong laxative. Spanish explorers gave it the name ‘cascara sagrada’, or ‘sacred bark’.

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