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Zanthoxylum clava-herculis
Also called West Indian Yellowwood, Pepperbark, Southern Prickly Ash, Hercules Club, Hercules Club Pricklyash
Hercules' club is a spiny tree or shrub from the southeastern United States, grown in warm climates for its spiny bark and attractive pinnate leaves. It needs full sun and plenty of water, and it is a host plant for the Giant Swallowtail butterfly.
Zanthoxylum clava-herculis, the Hercules' club, Hercules-club, pepperwood, or southern prickly ash, is a spiny tree or shrub native to the southeastern United States.
The benzophenanthridine alkaloid chelerythrine is the major active natural product found in Z. clava-herculis, exhibiting anti-bacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus.
The tree has a rounded crown and requires plentiful water and sunlight. Its leaves are browsed by deer and its fruit is eaten by birds.
Zanthoxylum acanthopodium · Alianthus Like Prickly Ash · Common pricklyash · Winged Prickly Ash · Climbing Orange · Sichuan Pepper · Zanthoxylum coco · African Satinwood · Zanthoxylum laetum · Chopi · Cape Yellowwood · Mastic Leaf Prickly Ash
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Zanthoxylum clava-herculis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
