Zanthoxylum (from the Greek ξανθὸν ξύλον, "yellow wood") is a genus of about 250 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs in the citrus or rue family, Rutaceae, native to warm temperate and subtropical areas worldwide. Common names include Prickly-ash and Hercules' Club.
The fruit of several species are used to make the spice Sichuan pepper. They are also used as bonsai trees.
[edit] Selected species
- Zanthoxylum acanthopodium
- Zanthoxylum ailanthoides - Japanese Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum alatum - Winged Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum albuquerquei D.R.Simpson (Peru)
- Zanthoxylum americanum Mill. - Toothache Tree, Northern Prickly-ash (Eastern and Central United States)
- Zanthoxylum atchoum (Aké Assi) Waterman (Côte d'Ivoire)
- Zanthoxylum beecheyanum
- Zanthoxylum belizense Lundell (Central America)
- Zanthoxylum bifoliolatum - Maricao Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum brachyacanthum F.Muell.- Thorny Yellowwood (Australia)
- Zanthoxylum buesgenii
- Zanthoxylum capense
- Zanthoxylum caribaeum - Yellow Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum chevalieri Waterman (Ghana)
- Zanthoxylum clava-herculis L. - Hercules' Club, Southern Prickly-ash (southeastern United States)
- Zanthoxylum coco Gillies ex Hook. & Arn. - Coco, Smelly Sauco (Argentina, Bolivia)
- Zanthoxylum coreanum - Korean Lime Tree
- Zanthoxylum coriaceum - Biscayne Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum davyi
- Zanthoxylum delagoense Waterman (Mozambique)
- Zanthoxylum deremense (Engl.) Kokwaro (Malawi, Tanzania)
- Zanthoxylum dipetalum H.Mann - Kāwaʻu (Hawaii)
- Zanthoxylum fagara Gard. & Forest - Lime Prickly-ash (Neotropics)
- Zanthoxylum ferrugineum J.D.Smith (Central America)
- Zanthoxylum flavum Vahl - West Indian Satinwood (Caribbean)
- Zanthoxylum gentlei Lundell (Belize, Guatemala, Honduras)
- Zanthoxylum harrisii P.Wilson ex Britton (Jamaica)
- Zanthoxylum hartii (Krug & Urb.) P.Wilson (Jamaica)
- Zanthoxylum hawaiiense Hillebr. - Aʻe, Hawaiʻi Prickly-ash (Hawaii)
- Zanthoxylum heterophyllum (Lam.) Smith (Mauritius, Réunion)
- Zanthoxylum hiemale
- Zanthoxylum hirsutum Buckley - Texas Hercules' Club
- Zanthoxylum holtzianum (Engl.) Waterm. (Tanzania)
- Zanthoxylum humile
- Zanthoxylum integrifoliolum (Merr.) Merr. (The Phillipines, Taiwan)
- Zanthoxylum kauaense A.Gray - Aʻe, Kauaʻi Prickly-ash (Hawaii)
- Zanthoxylum leprieurii
- Zanthoxylum limonella - Makaen
- Zanthoxylum lindense (Engl.) Kokwaro (Tanzania)
- Zanthoxylum martinicense (Lam.) DC. - White Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum monophyllum - Yellow Prickle
- Zanthoxylum nadeaudii Drake (French Polynesia)
- Zanthoxylum negrilense Fawc. & Rendle (Jamaica)
- Zanthoxylum nitidum - Shining Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum oahuense Hillebr. - Aʻe, Oʻahu Prickly-ash (Island of Oʻahu in Hawaii)
- Zanthoxylum ocumarense
- Zanthoxylum ovatifoliolatum
- Zanthoxylum naranjillo - Naranjillo
- Zanthoxylum panamense P.Wilson (Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama)
- Zanthoxylum parvum Shinners - Tickletongue
- Zanthoxylum pinnatum
- Zanthoxylum piperitum - Japanese Pepper Tree, Japan Pepper, Sanshō
- Zanthoxylum planispinum - Bamboo-leaf Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum procerum Donn Sm. (Central America)
- Zanthoxylum psammophilum (Aké Assi) Waterman (Côte d'Ivoire)
- Zanthoxylum punctatum - Dotted Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum rhetsa - Teppal [2]
- Zanthoxylum rhoifolium
- Zanthoxylum schinifolium - Mastic-leaved Prickly-ash
- Zanthoxylum simulans Hance - Chinese Prickly-ash, Sichuan pepper (Eastern China, Taiwan)
- Zanthoxylum spinifex (Jacq.) DC. - Niaragato
- Zanthoxylum thomasianum (Krug & Urb.) P.Wilson - St. Thomas Prickly-ash (Puerto Rico, British Virgin Islands, United States Virgin Islands)
[edit] Culinary use
A spice called teppal or tirphal (Zanthoxylum rhetsa) is used in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Goa, by a very small community called Konkanis (they speak a language called Konkani), an official language of Goa and spoken in many parts of these three states. Teppal is a fruit which grows in bunches like grapes on trees full of thorns. The fresh fruits are parrot green in color and are used as a flavouring agent in many curries made with a paste of coconut, chilis, and other spices. The fruit is seasonal and available during the monsoon period. When dried, the flesh of the fruit hardens, turns a brownish black color and opens up to show the black seeds within. The seeds are discarded and the dried fruit is stored in containers for use around the year. Mostly used in fish preparations and a few vegetarian dishes, with the coconut masala, this spice has a very strong woody aroma and is discarded at the time of eating the curry. This tree is also called jummn kayee or gamathe haralu in Kannada and koili kaya in Malayalam.
[edit] Ecology
Zanthoxylum species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including The Engrailed.
[edit] Notes & References
[edit] External links
