Herb: Oil Nut


Latin name: Pyrularia pubera


Family: Santalaceae (Sandalwood Family)



Medicinal use of Oil Nut:

The plant has been used as a salve on old sores. The seed has been chewed to cause vomiting in the treatment of colic.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Deciduous
Shrub

Height:
3.5 m
(11 feet)

Flowering:
May to
June

Habitat of the herb:

Rich woods, where it is parasitic on the roots of deciduous trees and shrubs, most commonly on Tsuga carolina.

Edible parts of Oil Nut:

Fruit. Caution is advised since the fruit is said to be permeated with an acrid oil. The pear-shaped fruit is about 25mm long. An edible oil is obtained from the seed. Is this different from the acrid poisonous oil of the fruit?

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe into a pot containing a small host tree. Stored seed will require 3 months cold stratification before it is sown. Grow on in a cold frame until the plant is large enough to plant out and then plant it close to a mature host tree. Remove the small host tree once the plant is well established.

Cultivation of Oil Nut:

Rich woods, where it is parasitic on the roots of deciduous trees and shrubs, most commonly on Tsuga carolina.

Known hazards of Pyrularia pubera:

The whole plant, especially the fruit, contains an acrid poisonous oil.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.