Herbal: Devil's Club

Image credit: Gillfoto, via Wikimedia Commons

Latin name: Oplopanax horridus
Synonyms: Devil's walking stick, Alaskan ginseng, sƛ̕ax̌ʷdup (Salish), Ts’iihlnjaaw (Haida)
Action: adaptogen, alterative, analgesic, anti-microbial, carminative, expectorant, immune stimulant, pulmonary, rheumatic, tonic
Parts: Bark of buried stems, roots; bark of aerial stems (inferior)
Harvest: Fall/winter
Uses:
- external: tense/cramping/sore muscles, sprains; sore joints, arthritis; abscesses, staph infection
- internal: cold/damp stagnation; damp/toxic heat; indigestion, constipation, stomachache; regulates blood sugar and metabolic syndrome; anxious depression; menstrual/muscle cramps; colds and flu

Notes: May have a laxative effect when taken internally.  Some active compounds are aromatic - fresh vs. dried may have slightly different characteristics.  Dry with as little heat as possible, or tincture fresh.

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Of all the herbs I have started to learn about in my new home in the Pacific Northwest, no others have the complexity of devil's club.  Not just for the subtlety of its medicinal uses, which are hard to fit into the neat pigeonholes of European herbalism, but for its historical and cultural significance.  This plant is deeply, powerfully important to many indigenous tribes, used for physical and spiritual medicine, for traditional rites, in stories, and as a valued member of the ecosystem.  I have tried to find writings from native herbalists on this plant, in an effort to approach it with the appropriate amount of respect, but when it comes to living with and using devil's club I know it will take years to understand it.

It is a slow-growing woody herb, shallow-rooted in damp soil with lots of organic matter, in the dim daylight of the understory.  The stems tend to grow in a linear fashion, not branching often, continuing to grow upward until the wind, rain, or snow knocks them over.  Then they root at the nodes and continue growing, sideways or at an angle, creating odd sprawling thickets over time  Lots of time; each stem grows only 4-6" per year in good conditions.

While the buried stems tend to grow smooth after a year or two, the aerial parts of the plants are covered in slim, bristling spines.  As with some cactus, the spines are exceptionally sharp and tend to break off in the skin, causing irritation and sometimes abscess.  It is a plant to approach cautiously.  Thick cowhide gloves are enough protection, though I have felt the spines tickle even through those, and I would hesitate to grasp the stems firmly regardless of what protection I had.  When I interacted with a colony of devil's club for the first time, I took great care with how I moved, how I took hold of it, and how it moved in response.  It tapped me on the forehead only once, a friendly reminder that I should probably wear safety glasses next time.

The colony was fairly large and well-established, watched over by the ranger who manages the Boy Scout camp up the mountain from me.  He was kind enough to lead me to one of the more accessible colonies so that I could carefully dig out a few transplants to take home; I knew a spot that it would almost certainly like, and I wanted to establish a patch for my own medicine, as well as to enrich the ecosystem here.  I know my relatives who lived here before were likely to eradicate such a touchy neighbor, but I don't see why it couldn't have a place for itself out on the edges.  I expect it to take about five years to settle in, and if I need more for my medicine cupboard before then, I'll ask my ranger neighbor if I can harvest a few buried stems.  It's possible to do so without impacting the health of the plants, if you're careful.

The medicinal properties are, as I mentioned, hard to categorize neatly.  Few herbs have such a broad systematic action, and we aren't used to describing it; Chinese medicine comes closer, with its characterization of heat, dampness, and wind, and some native tribes found good stories to encompass its actions.  I found an ethnobiology paper from the 1980s, summarizing various observations of how native tribes use the plant; it's dated and kind of cringe in its language (go figure) but it does offer something of a cross-section of similar uses.

Of more modern writings, I have found only a few on the internet by indigenous authors, and they are mostly short.  The medicinal uses are a single sentence, summing up what seems to be a broad range of applications; still, I can appreciate that physical medicine in many native tribes is inseparable from the spiritual traditions, and they are under no obligation to put such integral parts of their culture on display.  One of the less brief articles is from the Kw'umut Lelum, and mentions that "Devil’s Club is anti-viral, used as an anti-inflammatory, a pain-killing medicine, to heal skin infections, helps to stabilize blood sugar levels, used to combat arthritis, rheumatism, gastrointestinal issues, colds and fever. Many people suffering from diabetes also drink Devil’s Club Tea (made from the shredded bark)."  This echoes a few other sources.

What I am left with otherwise is information by non-native authors, which ranges from the clinical (WebMD, for example) to the mystical, with a far less deep understanding of the plant as medicine.  Several focus mostly on the logistics of harvesting the herb and processing it in various ways, such as the posts on collecting the roots and making tincture and salve by Alaska Floats My Boat. While this information is helpful, it tends to leave out much of the question of what one does with it afterwards.  Alaska notes that "There are many reported medicinal uses of devil's club. Historically it has been used for sprains, boils, arthritis, diabetes, stomach troubles, tuberculosis, colds, as a general tonic and much more.* This is powerful medicine and deserves respect. Internal use of devil's club can dangerously lower blood sugar, so check with your doctor before using it. There are more reasons to be very careful with devil's club, too[...]", with a footnote that these claims are not to be construed as medical advice, and a recommended reading list.

Ravensong Herbals has a long article on the plant, describing their own spiritual connection to it and how to harvest responsibly, with a more detailed discussion of its medicinal uses. I'm using that as a starting point, with the understanding that I'll probably have to experiment a little and listen to my body to learn how it could benefit my own health.  Ravensong summarizes its character as: "It strengthens and balances the body and mind, and has spiritually-protective properties. It has important applications in herbal medicine for respiratory infections, pain, arthritis, type II Diabetes, heart disease, weakness, and depression. Devil’s club lifts the spirit, sharpens the mind, and fortifies the body against stress."

Along with the near-universal agreement that it is a powerful treatment for Type-II Diabetes (with the caveat that it can tank blood sugar levels if not used with moderation), several sources assert that it has been a traditional treatment for tuberculosis, apparently quite an effective one.  To a less extreme degree, it is evidently a pulmonary herb, good for congestion, cough, and lung irritation.  It stimulates the immune system, helping with colds and flu.  It helps with digestive issues, presumably by regulating the action of smooth muscle tissue; that fits in with its application for menstrual cramps (both internally and externally), and its relief for sprained, tense, and cramping muscles in general.  It also relieves arthritis pain, internally and externally, both rheumatic and osteoarthritic, and helps with aching joints.  It is apparently a powerful antimicrobial, helpful in everything from toothache to staph infections, and a salve or poultice can be the best remedy for its own festering prickles.

For its more systematic effects, it may be best described as a general tonic and alterative, though not a mild one.  It stimulates the nervous system, endocrine system, and immune system, restoring weak or depressed functions, regulating excess, and clearing pathways.  It helps with lethargic and anxious states both, and it's likely one of those rare remedies that can moderate nervous depression.  I suspect it would help with adrenal exhaustion, though I have no evidence or anecdote to that effect--I'd be willing to try it, given its other characters.

Similarly, it is reported to be one of those rare creatures which can address both damp/cold stagnation and damp heat, presumably thanks to its astringent and stimulating qualities.  I would want to use it in moderation, again, because a little goes a long way with herbs like this.  Moderation is probably the keyword for it overall, in fact... or, perhaps, balance.  It's listed as an adaptogen, something that helps the body cope with metabolic or psychological stress.  Its strength seems to be in restoring the balance between too much energy and too little, between cold and hot, between all the interlocking levels of ions and neurotransmitters and hormones.  A rare herb, indeed.

So, my list of uses for my herbal are:

• adaptogen - for mental, emotional, and metabolic stress
• alterative - to rebalance the body
• analgesic and anti-microbial - for sores and abscesses, especially difficult skin infections, and even infected teeth (until proper care can be obtained)
• carminative - for stomach cramps, constipation, gas; not for fluxes, as it can have a laxative effect
• stimulant - of the central nervous system, endocrine system, immune system; to elevate low moods and lethargic funk
• expectorant and pulmonary - for respiratory viruses, wet coughs, and other lung infections
• rheumatic - for sore and sprained joints and muscles, cramps, and arthritis
• tonic - to strengthen the body and spirit

I personally have some hope that it might prove a front-line defense for when I get exposed to the class of solvents I'm sensitive to.  They are powerful oxidants, with breakdown products that cause my systemic inflammation to flare for months.  I have developed a little resilience in the last few years, but a sufficient dose would probably still induce hemolytic anemia, with its double-whammy of lost red blood cells and the dirty mess left behind by their debris.  I have a sneaking suspicion that devil's club might help my body weather the oxidation flood, clean up the cellular toxins, help re-balance my injured nervous system and liver, and moderate the inflammation.  Any help would be welcome, to be honest, as there are no conventional supplements or medicines I have found to assist, other than large doses of vitamin C.  It's a deep injury, and perhaps a powerful balancing herb would help.

I hope my little colony likes its new home, at the very foot of the near pasture... it's in a small hollow under the trees, near the creek, and it should stay moist from what pasture drainage isn't caught by the new creekbed.  It's sheltered by tall alders and wild cherry to the south, and a slight rise to the north, but plenty of indirect and dappled light will reach there.  The trees drop a thick mulch of leaves every year, and the soil is silty, a little on the heavy side to help with water retention, and full of organic matter.  Most of all, it's far beyond any fence line, within a stone's throw of the road but with the barrier of the creek to isolate it.  It should have quiet and privacy there, as I don't think anyone will venture there except very deliberately.  A good place, for a neighbor that likes its personal space.