Description
Other common names include Button Snakeroot, Yucca-leaf Eryngo, Corn Snakeroot, Water-eryngo, Rattlesnake Flag, and Rattlesnake Weed. Rattlesnake Master matures to a height of 4′ and has white “bristly” flowers. These bristly flowers and coarse leaves make it largely ignored by deer and rabbits. It is a member of the carrot/parsley (Apiaceae) family, but is very different-looking from the usual umbel flowers and fine-cut foliage of plants in this family. It is typically found in medium-wet to medium-dry soils and prefers sites with full sun. Although not a butterfly or bumblebee magnet, small native bees, moths and flies will enjoy nectar on Rattlesnake Master. Rattlesnake Master is one of the host plants of the Black Swallowtail. The latin name, Eryngium yuccifolium, comes from the fact that the leaves look very much like a Yucca plant.
The shoots and roots can be eaten and be cooked. The root is used for illness or to protect against snake bites. Illness include fevers coughs, and vomiting. (Ajilvsgi, 1984; Trent,1938).
TRADITIONAL USES
Traditionally used by Native Americans to make rope and string (Ajilvsgi, 1984). Rattlesnake Master was a popular herb in the 18th and 19th centuries. Early American history reports that Native Americans chewed the root, blew it on their hands, and then handled rattlesnakes without any conscience. The root was more often used in bitter teas as an antidote to venereal disease, snakebites, impotence, expelling worms, and to induce vomiting.
RESEARCH
The most popular medicinal part of these plants is their roots. Chewing the root can be used to help with appetite and increase saliva amounts. The roots, after been chewed or powdered, are applied to snakebites as an antidote. Mixing the root with a tea concoction is a remedy for helping with fevers, spasms, urinary issues, whooping coughs, and breathing problems. It also helps with liver problems and diseases involving the liver and prostate. Reports have also shown that this plant helps against erectile dysfunction and skin issues (Foster et al., 1990; Kress, 2011).
Rattlesnake master is an herbaceous perennial native to mesic tallgrass prairies, savannas and open rocky woods of the central and eastern United States. It is grown as an ornamental for its unique “golf ball” flowers. It is easily grown in full sun in most garden soils, preferring sandy soils, but tolerating clay or rocky soils. It is drought tolerant, doing best in dry, lean soils. Hardy Perennial Zones 3-8.
