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Ceanothus cuneatus

Common name:	Buckbrush	Family:	Rhamnaceae
Author:	(Hook.)Nutt.	Botanical references:	11, 71, 200
Synonyms:	Rhamnus cuneatus (Hook.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	South-western N. America - Oregon to California and Mexico.
Habitat:	Dry slopes below 1800 metres in California[71].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Buck Brush [S], Buckbrush [P], Narrowleaf Buckbrush [DEN1], Red Root [S], Sedge-leaf Buckbrush [B], Wedgeleaf Ceanothus [FEIS],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	cuneatus = wedge shaped
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Rhamnales. Buckthorn family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 1.8m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 7. It is in leaf all year, in flower in May, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. It can fix Nitrogen. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Cultivated Beds, Sunny Edge.

Edible Uses

Seed Tea.

Seed[94]. No more details are given.
The leaves and flowers make an excellent tea when steeped in boiling water for about 5 minutes[183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Astringent Digestive Hepatic Pectoral Tonic.

Astringent, digestive, pectoral, tonic. A liver tonic[94].

Other Uses

Dye Soap.

A green dye is obtained from the flowers[168].
A red dye is obtained from the root[94].
The stems have been used as rods in basket making[257].
All parts of the plant are rich in saponins - when crushed and mixed with water they produce a good lather which is an effective and gentle soap[94, 168, 169]. This soap is very good at removing dirt, though it does not remove oils very well. This means that when used on the skin it will not remove the natural body oils, but nor will it remove engine oil etc[K] The flowers are a very good source, when used as a body soap they leave behind a pleasant perfume on the skin[K]. The developing seed cases are also a very good source of saponins[K].

Cultivation details

Prefers a warm sunny position but tolerates light shade[11, 200]. Prefers a light soil with a low lime content[108]. Tolerates some lime, but will not succeed on shallow chalk[200].
Plants dislike root disturbance, they should be planted out into their permanent positions whilst still small[182].
Dislikes heavy pruning, it is best not to cut out any wood thicker than a pencil[182]. Plants flower on the previous year's growth, if any pruning is necessary it is best carried out immediately after flowering[200, 219]. Constant pruning to keep a plant small can shorten its life[200].
A fast-growing plant, it flowers well when young, often in its second year from seed[11].
Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus[200].
Some members of this genus have 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[200, 212].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed should be pre-soaked for 12 hours in warm water and then given 1 - 3 months stratification at 1° c[138, 200]. Germination usually takes place in 1 - 2 months at 20° c[138]. One report says that the seed is best given boiling water treatment, or heated in 4 times its volume of sand at 90 - 120° c for 4 - 5 minutes and then soaked in warm water for 12 hours before sowing it[214]. The seed exhibits considerable longevity, when stored for 15 years in an air-tight dry container at 1 - 5° c it has shown little deterioration in viability[214]. The seed is ejected from its capsule with some force when fully ripe, timing the collection of seed can be difficult because unless collected just prior to dehiscence the seed is difficult to extract and rarely germinates satisfactorily[214]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle. Grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter and plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, taken at a node[200], July/August in a frame[11].
Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, 7 - 12 cm with a heel, October in a cold frame[78]. The roots are quite brittle and it is best to pot up the callused cuttings in spring, just before the roots break[78]. Good percentage.

Suppliers

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

[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.
[S] SW USA Dist. Maps from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Illustration from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Illustration from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[DEN] Data _ Photos (Good Identification info) from the Virginia Tech's Dendrology Deptarments' Tree Fact Sheets.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.

References for the family Rhamnaceae.

To be included in the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[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.

[71] Munz. A California Flora. University of California Press 1959
An excellent flora but no pictures. Not for the casual reader.

[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.

[94] Sweet. M. Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West. Naturegraph Co. 1962 ISBN 0-911010-54-8
Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.

[108] International Bee Research Association. Garden Plants Valuable to Bees. International Bee Research Association. 1981
The title says it all.

[138] Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 3. Thompson and Morgan. 1989
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation.

[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.

[169] Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[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.

[212] Craighead. J., Craighead. F. and Davis. R. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers The Riverside Press 1963 ISBN 63-7093
Excellent little pocket guide to the area, covering 590 species and often giving details of their uses.

[214] Matthews. V. The New Plantsman. Volume 1, 1994. Royal Horticultural Society 1994 ISBN 1352-4186
A quarterly magazine, it has articles on Himalayacalamus hookerianus, hardy Euphorbias and an excellent article on Hippophae spp.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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