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Texas Hercules Club

Zanthoxylum hirsutum

Other common name(s):

Tickle Tongue, Texas Prickly Ash, Limestone Prickly Ash, Toothache Tree, Tickle-tongue, Tingle-tongue

Family:

Rutaceae (Rue Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

Central Great Plains, Chihuahuan Deserts, Cross Timbers, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Texas Blackland Prairies
Limestone Plains
Chihuahuan Basins and Playas, Low Mountains and Bajadas, Stockton Plateau
Carbonate Cross Timbers, Eastern Cross Timbers, Grand Prairie, Limestone Cut Plain, Western Cross Timbers
Balcones Canyonlands, Edwards Plateau Woodland, Llano Uplift, Semiarid Edwards Plateau
Lower Rio Grande Alluvial Floodplain, Lower Rio Grande Valley, Southern Subhumid Gulf Coastal Prairies
Northern Blackland Prairie

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Tree

Height

6
to
12
ft.

Spread

6
to
12
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Loam, Calcareous

Light Requirement

Sun, Part Shade

Water Requirement

Low, Medium

Native Habitat

Grassland

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Yellow, Green

Bloom Season

Spring

Seasonal Interest

Fruit, Larval Host

Wildlife Benefit

Butterflies, Birds, Bees

Maintenance

Very little maintenance needed. Branches and stems are prickly, use leather gloves when handling. Prune for shape or to raise canopy if needed for walkways. Prickly branches should be removed from traffic areas. Propagation: Root cuttings.

Comments

Blooms March-May. Aromatic foliage when crushed is similar to orange peel. Has spiny branches and trunk. The leaves are shiny and opposite growth with spines at the axis. Flowers small, greenish, in clusters at the ends of branchlets. Produces clusters of red berries. Both the berries and leaves are edible, creating tingly sensation similar to Szechuan peppers. When chewed, it creates a numbing sensation. Used to treat toothaches and mouth pain. Bucks will scrape trunk with antlers. Pollination: Native bees. Attracts birds. Larval host: Giant Swallowtail butterfly.
Previous Scientific Name(s): Synonym(s): Zanthoxylum clava-herculis var. fruticosum

References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=ZAHI2. 3) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=22445&locationType=County&mapType=Normalm 4) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=28863#null

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State Office Phone: 830.997.9272

State Office Address:
Native Plant Society of Texas
PO Box 3017
Fredericksburg, TX 78624

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