Herb: Prickly Cardinal


Latin name: Erythrina zeyheri


Family: Leguminosae



Medicinal use of Prickly Cardinal:

The plant is narcotic and purgative.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Deciduous
Shrub

Height:
100 cm
(3 1/4 foot)

Flowering:
July to
September

Habitat of the herb:

Woodland and lightly wooded grassland.

Propagation of Prickly Cardinal:

Seed - pre-soak for 12 hours in warm water and sow spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse and plant out in late spring or early summer. Heeled cuttings of young growth in the spring in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse and plant out in late spring or early summer.

Cultivation of the herb:

Woodland and lightly wooded grassland.

Known hazards of Erythrina zeyheri:

The plant contains alkaloids that have powerful narcotic and purgative effects.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.