Family Name: Apocynacae
Botanical Name(s): Apocynum androsaemifolium
Popular Name(s): Catchfly, Flytrap, Honeybloom, Milk Ipecac,
Milkweed, Mountain Hemp, Spreading Dogbane, Western Wallflower, Dogbane
Parts Used: The dried rhizome, roots
Habitat: Bitterroot is widely found in North America.
Description: Bitterroot is a perennial herb which grows to a
height 5 or 6 feet. Its leaves are opposite, roundish to oblong-ovate or
ovate, dark green at above and lighter and hairy at the bases. Its
flowers are white, tinged with red and grow in terminal cymes.
Uses: Bitterroot has cathartic, diaphoretic, emetic and
expectorant properties. It is used as an alterative in rheumatism,
syphilis and scrofula. It is used to cure dyspepsia, constipation,
fever, gallstones and dropsy.
