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Alnus glutinosa
| Common name: |
Alder |
Family: |
Betulaceae |
| Author: |
(L.)Gaertn. |
Botanical references: |
11, 17, 200 |
| Synonyms: |
Betula glutinosa (L.), Alnus rotundifolia (Stokes.) |
| Known Hazards: |
None known |
| Range: |
Most of Europe, including Britain, to Siberia, W. Asia and N. Africa. |
| Habitat: |
Wet ground in woods, near lakes and along the sides of streams, often formng pure woods n succession to marsh or fen[9]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
0 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 3 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| A. alnus[B,P]
A. barbata[G]
A. glutinosa subsp. barbata[G]
A. glutinosa var. barbata[G]
Betula alnus[H]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Alder [L,E], Aliso [E], Common Alder [H], European Alder [B,L,P], European Black Alder [DEN1], Kizilagac [E], Zwarte Els [D], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
glutinosa = very sticky
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA Plants Database |
|
Order: Fagales. Birch family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Europe
Spain Turkey
|
| Noxious, Invasive and Injurious Weeds | From USDA PLANTS database, Weeds Australia
, DEFRA Injurious Weeds | | Listed as noxious/invasive for: USA Invasive. |
Physical Characteristics
A decidious tree growing to 25m by 10m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 3. It is in leaf from March to November, in flower from March to April, and the seeds ripen from September to November. The flowers are monoecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but both sexes can be found on the same plant) and are pollinated by Wind.
It can fix Nitrogen.
It is noted for attracting wildlife.
We rate it 0/5 for edibility and
3/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.
It requires moist or wet soil.
The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Bog Garden, Hedge, Woodland, Canopy.Edible Uses
None known
Medicinal Uses
Disclaimer
Alterative
Astringent Cathartic Emetic Febrifuge Galactogogue Haemostatic Parasiticide Skin Tonic Vermifuge.
The bark is alterative, astringent, cathartic, febrifuge and tonic[4,
7, 14, 46, 269]. The fresh bark will cause vomiting, so use dried bark for
all but emetic purposes[21]. A decoction of the dried bark is used to bathe
swellings and inflammations, especially of the mouth and throat[4, 9, 21,
254]. The powdered bark and the leaves have been used as an internal
astringent and tonic, whilst the bark has also been used as an internal and
external haemostatic against haemorrhage[21]. The dried bark of young twigs
are used, or the inner bark of branches 2 - 3 years old[9]. It is harvested
in the spring and dried for later use[9].
Boiling the inner bark in vinegar produces a useful wash to treat lice and a
range of skin problems such as scabies and scabs[21]. The liquid can also be
used as a toothwash[21].
The leaves are astringent, galactogogue and vermifuge[7]. They are used to
help reduce breast engorgement in nursing mothers[254]. A decoction of the
leaves is used in folk remedies for treating cancer of the breast, duodenum,
oesophagus, face, pylorus, pancreas, rectum, throat, tongue, and uterus[269].
The leaves are harvested in the summer and used fresh[238].
Other Uses
Charcoal
Dye Hedge Ink Insecticide Pioneer Shelterbelt Soil reclamation Tannin Teeth Wood.
Tolerant of clipping and maritime exposure, the alder can be grown in a
windbreak or a hedge[75]. The trees are very quick to establish[200] and will
grow at a rate of 1 metre or more per year when young[K].
This is an excellent pioneer species for re-establishing woodlands on
disused farmland, difficult sites etc. Its fast rate of growth means that it
quickly provides sheltered conditions to allow more permanent woodland trees
to become established. In addition, bacteria on the roots fix atmospheric
nitrogen - whilst this enables the tree to grow well in quite poor soils it
also makes some of this nitrogen available to other plants growing nearby.
Alder trees also have a heavy leaf canopy and when the leaves fall in the
autumn they help to build up the humus content of the soil. Alder seedlings
do not compete well in shady woodland conditions and so this species
gradually dies out as the other trees become established[K].
Because they tolerate very poor soils and also produce nitrogen nodules on
their roots, alders are suitable for use in land reclamation schemes.
The plants can be used as a source of biomass[269]. According to the
phytomass files, annual productivity is estimated at 6 to 9 tonnes per
hectare. The tree has yielded 11.8 tonnes per hectare per annum on pulverized
fuel ash and annual productivity has been estimated at 8.66 tonnes per
hectare, with 5.87 tonnes in wood, bark, and branches, 2.79 tonnes in
foliage[269]. Alder has been recommended for consideration for firewood
plantations in Tropical highlands where unseasonable cold might destroy the
red alder[269].
The powdered bark has been used as an ingredient of toothpastes[9]. Sticks
of the bark have been chewed as tooth cleaners[9].
An ink and a tawny-red dye are obtained from the bark[4, 6, 7, 66].
A green dye is obtained from the catkins[4, 6, 66].
A pinkish-fawn dye is obtained from the fresh green wood[4, 6, 66].
A yellow dye is obtained from the bark and young shoots[4, 6, 66].
A cinnamon dye is obtained from the shoots if they are harvested in
March[4]. If they are dried and powdered then the colour will be a tawny
shade[4].
The bark and the fruits contain up to 20% tannin[46, 61, 223], but they also
contain so much dyestuff (imparting a dark red shade) that this limits their
usefulness[4, 7]. The leaves are also a good source of tannin[4].
The leaves are clammy and, if spread in a room, are said to catch fleas and
flies on their glutinous surface[4, 7].
Wood - very durable in water, elastic, soft, fairly light, easily worked,
easily split. It is often used for situations where it has to remain
underwater and is also used for furniture, pencils, bowls, woodcuts, clogs
etc. It is much valued by cabinet makers[4, 7, 11, 13, 26, 46, 66, 100, 115].
The wood also makes a good charcoal[4, 115].
Cultivation details
Prefers a heavy soil and a damp situation[1, 11], tolerating prolonged
submergence of its roots and periods with standing water to 30cm deep[186,
200]. Plants can also grow quickly in much drier sites, though they will
usually not live for so long in such a position. Alders grow well in heavy
clay soils[24, 98], they also tolerate lime and very infertile sites[200].
Tolerates a wide range of soils but prefers a pH above 6[186]. Very tolerant
of maritime exposure[49, 75, 166]. Alder is estimated to tolerate an annual
precipitation of 40 to 200cm, an annual average temperature of 8 to 14° C and
a pH of 6 to 8[269].
The leaves often remain green on the tree until November, or even later on
young seedlings.
The seeds contain a margin of air-filled tissue and are capable of floating
in water for 30 days before becoming waterlogged[186]. This enables
distribution of the seed by water.
The alder has a very rapid early growth[98], specimens 5 years old from seed
were 4 metres tall even though growing in a very windy site in &ndndndnd[K].
This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil micro-organisms,
these form nodules on the roots of the plants and fix atmospheric nitrogen.
Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be
used by other plants growing nearby[98, 200]. Nitrogen-fixation by trees up
to 8 years old has been put at 125 kg/ha/yr., for 20 years at 56 - 130
kg/ha/yr.[269].
Trees often produce adventitious roots from near the base of the stem and
these give additional support in unstable soils[186].
Trees are very tolerant of cutting and were at one time much coppiced for
their wood which had a variety of uses[4, 186].
Alders are an important food plant for the caterpillars of many butterfly
and moth species[30] and also for small birds in winter[24].There are 90
insect species associated with this tree[24].
There are some named varieties, selected for their ornamental value[200]
Propagation
Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe and only just
covered[200]. Spring sown seed should also germinate successfully so long as
it is not covered[200, K]. The seed should germinate in the spring as the
weather warms up. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into
individual pots. If growth is sufficient, it is possible to plant them out
into their permanent positions in the summer, otherwise keep them in pots
outdoors and plant them out in the spring. There are about 700,000 - 750,000
seeds per kilo, but on average only about 20 - 25,000 plantable seedlings are
produced[269]. Seeds can remain viable for at least 12 months after floating
in water[269]. Seeds germinate as well under continuous darkness as with
normal day lengths. Air-dried seeds stored at 1 - 2° C retained their
viability for two years. Seeds can however be sown immediately as soon as
ripe[269].
If you have sufficient quantity of seed, it can be sown thinly in an outdoor
seed bed in the spring[78]. The seedlings can either be planted out into
their permanent positions in the autumn/winter, or they can be allowed to
grow on in the seed bed for a further season before planting them.
Cuttings of mature wood, taken as soon as the leaves fall in autumn,
outdoors in sandy soil.
Cultivars
- ''
- There are many named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].
Suppliers
Plants For A Future is working with the following groups to try and make these plants easily available. Parts of the proceeds will be donated to so please mention us when ordering.
- Wildwood Nurseries
-
Lower Manor Cottage
Thornbury
Holsworthy
Devon
EX22 7DD
Email: lorna@macace.co.uk
Phone 01409 261324
Fax 01409 261324
Distribution: UK
How to order: Direct from Wildwood by email/phone
Last Updated: March 03
Item:
Alnus glutinosa
(alder)
- Cool Temperate Nurseries
-
10 Ivy Grove
Nottingham
NG7 7LZ
Email: philcorbett53@hotmail.com
Phone 0115 847 8302
Fax 0115 847 8302
Distribution: UK
How to order: Direct from Cool Temperate by email/phone
Notes: Many Trees supplied on their own rootstock
Last Updated: April 03
Item:
Alnus glutinosa
(Alder)
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
PFAF Web Pages
This plant is mentioned in the following web pages
Web References
- Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
- [L] Scientific and Common Names (some photos)
from Lepidoptera and some other life forms
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [V] Images
from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A& M Bioinformatics Working Group.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [PHARM] Phytochemical Data
(common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HEC] Use, Folk Medicine, etc. from Handbook of Energy Crops by James Duke
- [DEN] Data _ Photos
(Good Identification info) from the Virginia Tech's Dendrology Deptarments' Tree Fact Sheets.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for alnus glutinosa (a possible synonym).
References for the family Betulaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[6] Mabey. R. Plants with a Purpose. Fontana 1979 ISBN 0-00-635555-2
Details on some of the useful wild plants of Britain. Poor on pictures but otherwise very good.
[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
[9] Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981 ISBN 0-600-37216-2
Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.
[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
[13] Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.
[14] Holtom. J. and Hylton. W. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press 1979 ISBN 0-87857-262-7
A good herbal.
[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
[21] Lust. J. The Herb Book. Bantam books 1983 ISBN 0-553-23827-2
Lots of information tightly crammed into a fairly small book.
[24] Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden.
Fairly good with lots of ideas about creating wildlife areas in the garden.
[26] Hills. L. Comfrey Report. Henry Doubleday Research Ass.
A small booklet giving a fairly comprehensive guide to the uses of comfrey.
[30] Carter D. Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe. Pan 1982 ISBN 0-330-26642-x
An excellent book on Lepidoptera, it also lists their favourite food plants.
[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
[49] Arnold-Forster. Shrubs for the Milder Counties.
Trees and shrubs that grow well in &ndndndnd and other mild areas of Britain. Fairly good, a standard reference book.
[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
[66] Freethy. R. From Agar to Zenery. The Crowood Press 1985 ISBN 0-946284-51-2
Very readable, giving details on plant uses based on the authors own experiences.
[75] Rosewarne experimental horticultural station. Shelter Trees and Hedges. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food 1984
A small booklet packed with information on trees and shrubs for hedging and shelterbelts in exposed maritime areas.
[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
[98] Gordon. A. G. and Rowe. D. C. f. Seed Manual for Ornamental Trees and Shrubs.
Very comprehensive guide to growing trees and shrubs from seed. Not for the casual reader.
[100] Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969 ISBN 0192176218
An excellent and well illustrated pocket guide for those with very large pockets. Also gives some details on plant uses.
[115] Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Written about a hundred years ago, but still a very good guide to the useful plants of Britain.
[166] Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990
A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.
[186] Beckett. G. and K. Planting Native Trees and Shrubs. Jarrold 1979
An excellent guide to native British trees and shrubs with lots of details about the plants.
[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[223] Rottsieper. E.H.W. Vegetable Tannins The Forestal Land, Timber and Railways Co. Ltd. 1946
A fairly detailed treatise on the major sources of vegetable tannins.
[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.
[254] Chevallier. A. The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Dorling Kindersley. London 1996 ISBN 9-780751-303148
An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
[269] Duke. J. Handbook of Energy Crops - 1983
Published only on the Internet, excellent information on a wide range of plants.
Readers Comments
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