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Central Plains Gardening
Common Pricklyash Provides Reliable Orange or Gold Color in Autumn
Zanthoxylum americanum also serves as food for pollinators, nesting site for songbirds and host for butterfly larvae
I’m sure common pricklyash (Zanthoxylum americanum) is not on most gardeners’ planting lists, but this underutilized multistemmed shrub native to the eastern U.S. has several interesting and desirable qualities: Flowers in early spring attract several types of bees; bright red fruit clusters lend interest in late summer and autumn; dense growth habit provides nesting sites for songbirds; and foliage color in autumn is orange or gold. This shrub forms thickets through root suckering, so it’s not suitable for small gardens.
Male flowers
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 35 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 37.2 degrees Celsius (USDA zones 3 to 7; find your zone)
Typical plant communities: Woodland edges, old fields or railway rights of way
Water requirement: Little to none once established; very drought-tolerant
Light requirement: Full sun to partial sun
Mature size: 10 to 20 feet tall and 8 feet wide
Where it will grow: Hardy to minus 35 degrees Fahrenheit, or minus 37.2 degrees Celsius (USDA zones 3 to 7; find your zone)
Typical plant communities: Woodland edges, old fields or railway rights of way
Water requirement: Little to none once established; very drought-tolerant
Light requirement: Full sun to partial sun
Mature size: 10 to 20 feet tall and 8 feet wide
Fruit
Benefits and tolerances: Tolerates most soil types except heavy clay; hosts larvae of the giant swallowtail butterfly; attracts pollinators with flowers
Seasonal interest: Clusters of small flowers that open in April or early May before leaf emergence; dark green glossy leaves in summer and clusters of red fruit maturing in August; yellow or orange fall foliage
When to plant: Spring or fall
Benefits and tolerances: Tolerates most soil types except heavy clay; hosts larvae of the giant swallowtail butterfly; attracts pollinators with flowers
Seasonal interest: Clusters of small flowers that open in April or early May before leaf emergence; dark green glossy leaves in summer and clusters of red fruit maturing in August; yellow or orange fall foliage
When to plant: Spring or fall
Form in summer
Distinguishing traits. Common pricklyash is a multistemmed shrub with lateral thorns on its stems. It flowers in early spring before the leaves emerge and has reliable gold or orange fall color. The fruit has a strong citrus odor and oily secretion when crushed. It spreads outward by root suckers to form large thickets.
Note: It is not a true ash belonging to the Fraxinus genus, and it is not susceptible to an emerald ash borer infestation.
Distinguishing traits. Common pricklyash is a multistemmed shrub with lateral thorns on its stems. It flowers in early spring before the leaves emerge and has reliable gold or orange fall color. The fruit has a strong citrus odor and oily secretion when crushed. It spreads outward by root suckers to form large thickets.
Note: It is not a true ash belonging to the Fraxinus genus, and it is not susceptible to an emerald ash borer infestation.
How to use it. Plant on a large property along the edge of a woodland, along a fence or a similar partial-shade site. It forms large thickets, creating ideal nesting sites for songbirds that prefer to nest closer to the ground.
Common pricklyash is a larval host plant for the giant swallowtail butterfly.
Planting notes. Common pricklyash is easy to grow and requires little to no watering once established. The branches have thorns, so it’s best to put common pricklyash on the edge of a property away from regular foot traffic.
Rabbits browse young woody stems during the winter; protect new plantings with wire exclosures.
Planting notes. Common pricklyash is easy to grow and requires little to no watering once established. The branches have thorns, so it’s best to put common pricklyash on the edge of a property away from regular foot traffic.
Rabbits browse young woody stems during the winter; protect new plantings with wire exclosures.
A female mining bee
Pollinator notes. Common pricklyash is a larval host plant for the giant swallowtail butterfly (Papilio cresphontes) and may be one reason why the butterfly is ranging farther north than historically recorded.
Female pricklyash flowers are self-incompatible and rely on flower-visiting insects for pollination. The bisexual flowers produced on male plants are self-compatible, often flowering later than the male or female flowers, and produce a sporadic amount of fruit on male plants. Common bee genera that visit the flowers include mining bees (Andrena spp.) and small sweat bees (Lasioglossum spp.)
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Pollinator notes. Common pricklyash is a larval host plant for the giant swallowtail butterfly (Papilio cresphontes) and may be one reason why the butterfly is ranging farther north than historically recorded.
Female pricklyash flowers are self-incompatible and rely on flower-visiting insects for pollination. The bisexual flowers produced on male plants are self-compatible, often flowering later than the male or female flowers, and produce a sporadic amount of fruit on male plants. Common bee genera that visit the flowers include mining bees (Andrena spp.) and small sweat bees (Lasioglossum spp.)
More
Garden Design for Wildlife and Less Work
See more Great Design Plants
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Common names: Common pricklyash, prickly ash, toothache tree
Origin: Native to North America from the eastern Dakotas and central Nebraska eastward to New England in the north, and from Oklahoma north and east to Maryland in the south; in Canada, native to southern Ontario and Quebec