Common Names

Beaumont root
Bowman's root
Culver's physic
Culver's root
Hini
Leptandra
Oxadoddy
Physic root
Purple leptandra
Tall speedwell
Tall veronica
Whorlywort
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Parts Usually Used

Root
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Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Black root is a perennial plant; the slender, simple, straight, smooth, herbaceous stem grows 2-5 feet tall from a horizontal, woody rootstock. The lanceolate, finely serrate leaves grow in whorls of 4-7; and the tiny white (or purple) flowers are tubes, nearly sessile, and very numerous, grow in panicled spikes, calyx, four-parted corolla, small and nearly white; two projecting stamens on showy spikes. The fruit is an oblong-ovate, flattened, many-seeded capsule.
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Where Found

Native to the United States, grows in moist soil, moist woods, and swamps from New England to Minnesota and south to Kansas.
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Medicinal Properties

Cathartic, cholagogue, emetic, hepatic, alterative, tonic, antiseptic
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Biochemical Information

Lepthandrin in root
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Legends, Myths and Stories

Lepthandrin is the extract made from the root; it should be used in lesser amounts, from 1/4-1 grain, adjusting according to age and case. Dose of the powder, as a cathartic, 20-40 grains.
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Uses

Use cautiously. The infusion of the dried root used for sluggish conditions of the liver. The root is a cathartic for chronic constipation, and chronic Hepatic diseases. Used effectively for pleurisy, stimulating vomiting, diuretic, and some forms of dyspepsia. Cathartic for dysentery. Used, also, as a blood purifier or tonic.
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Formulas or Dosages

Not recommended for use without medical supervision.

Infusion: use 1 tsp. dried root to 1 cup boiling water. Steep for 30 minutes. Take in 3 equal parts, before each meal.

Tincture: take 2-4 drops in water.

Formula for Liver Disorders:
1 oz. Black root (Leptandra virginica)
2 oz. Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis)
2 oz. Senna (Cassia marilandica)
2 pints of distilled or boiled water
Reduce water to 1 pint by boiling. Take 2 tbsp. 3-4 times a day increasing the quantity if it fails to operate gently, or decreasing if it operates too much.
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Warning

The fresh root is too toxic to use safely. Dried root should be used. Not recommended for use without medical supervision.
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Bibliography

• American Folk Medicine, by Clarence Meyer, pg., 284.
• Back to Eden, by Jethro Kloss; pgs., 95-96.
• The Complete Medicinal Herbal, by Penelope Ody, pg., 21.
• Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants, by Steven Foster and James A. Duke, pg., 56.
• The Herb Book, by John Lust, pg., 125.
• How Indians Use Wild Plants for Food, Medicine & Crafts, by Frances Densmore, pg., 295.
• Indian Herbalogy of North America, by Alma R. Hutchens, pgs., 51-52, 105, 159, 193.
• The Yoga of Herbs, by Dr. David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, pg., 199.
• Planetary Herbology, by Michael Tierra, C.A., N.D., O.M.D., pgs., 89, 113, 365.

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