The genus Rhamnus contains more than 100 species native to North America [5]; species are also located in the north temperate regions, South America, and South Africa. Many non-native species have been naturalized in the United States. The name rhamnus is an ancient Greek name.
Rhamnus betulifolia birchleaf buckthorn
Rhamnus californica California buckthorn, California coffeeberry, coast coffeeberry, coffeeberry, pigeonberry, Sierra coffeeberry
Rhamnus caroliniana alder buckthorn, birch bog, brittlewood, buckthorn-tree, Carolina buckthorn, elbow-brush, Indian cherry, pale-cat-wood, polecat-tree, polecatwood, stinkberry, stink cherry, stinkwood, tree buckthorn, yellow buckthorn, yellowwood
Rhamnus crocea California redberry, coffeeberry, evergreen buckthorn, great redberry buckthorn, hollyleaf buckthorn, island buckthorn, island redberry buckthorn, redberry, redberry buckthorn
Rhamnus purshiana* bayberry, bearberry, bearwood, bitterbark, bitterboom, bittertrad, buckthorn cascara, California coffee, cascara, cascara buckthorn, cascara sagrada, chitam, chittam, chittern, chittim, coffeeberry, coffeebush, coffeetree, Oregon bearwood, pigeonberry, shittimwood, wahoo, western coffee, wild cherry, wild coffee, wild coffeebush, yellow-wood
*Commercial American species
The following description is for cascara buckthorn.
Distribution: The Pacific Coast region from British Columbia
(including Vancouver
Island), south to Washington, Oregon and northern California in
coastal ranges, and Sierra Nevada. Also in the Rocky Mountain
region of British Columbia, Washington, Idaho, and Montana.
The Tree: Cascara buckthorn grows in bottom lands, but it can be found along fence rows and roadsides. The tree grows scattered among Douglas-fir, maples, western redcedar and hemlock. The tree grows to a height of 40 ft (12 m), with a diameter of 1.5 ft (0.5 m). The bark is thin and smooth, developing brown to gray scales.
General Wood Characteristics: The sapwood of cascara buckthorn is yellowish white, while the heartwood is similar but with a red tinge. The wood is without characteristic odor or taste; it is hard and heavy.
Weighta
Weight
Moisture Specific lb/ft3 kg/m3
content gravity
Green 0.50 50 801
12% 0.52 36 577
Ovendry 0.55 NA NA
aReference (59).
Mechanical propertiesa
Property Green Dry
MOE 0.63 106 4.344 GPa 0.96 106 6.619 GPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
MOR 6.30 103 43.439 MPa 8.70 103 59.987
lbf/in2 lbf/in2 MPa
C| | 3.27 103 22.547 MPa 6.08 103 41.922
lbf/in2 lbf/in2 MPa
C 0.67 103 4.620 MPa 1.31 103 9.032 MPa
lbf/in2 lbf/in2
WML 13.4 92.393 kJ/m3 7.8 in-lbf/in3 53.781
in-lbf/in3 kJ/m3
Hardness 730 lbf 3,247.04 N 1,040 lbf 4,625.92
N
Shear| | 1.15 103 7.929 MPa 1.61 103 11.101
lbf/in2 lbf/in2 MPa
aReference (59).
Drying and shrinkagea
Percentage of shrinkage
(green to final moisture
content)
Type of 0% MC 6% MC 20% MC
shrinkage
Tangential 4.6 NA NA
Radial 3.2 NA NA
Volumetric 7.6 NA NA
aReference (59.
Durability: Not available at this time.
Preservation: Not available at this time.
Uses: Posts, turnery, furniture parts, novelties. Bark and wood extract used for laxative.
Toxicity: Bark and fruits are poisonous; sap causes dermatitis (54, 64).
Additional Reading: 29, 55, 68, 74. 55, 66, 68, 74, 79. 28, 29, 42, 43, 44, 48, 50, 55, 56, 68, 72, 73, 74, 79, 92, 97, 102. 74, 75, 77, 99, 106. 101.