Alder buckthorn from Köhler’s Medicinal Plants / Frangula alnus syn. Frangula dodonei

File-size: 5600 x 8000 Pixel. 

This digital rendering showcases the Frangula alnus, more commonly referred to as the Alder buckthorn. The illustration is a breathtaking masterpiece sourced from Köhlers Medicinal Plants, or Köhlers Medizinal Pflanzen in its original language. This historical botanical art dates back to approximately 1887, rendering it an invaluable piece of art.

Frangula alnus, commonly known as Alder Buckthorn, is a deciduous shrub or small tree that belongs to the Rhamnaceae family. This plant species is native to Europe and Asia and has been introduced to North America as an ornamental species. The bark of Frangula alnus is brown in color with distinctive lenticels giving it a scaly appearance. The leaves are alternate, elliptical or ovate-shaped with fine serrated edges. The plant flowers from late spring and produces small creamy white flowers in clusters that mature into round black berries during autumn which give them their common name 'black berry'. Frangulin, an anthraquinone present in the bark of this plant, makes it one of the primary sources used for herbal medicine as a mild laxative. Additionally, its wood is tough and hard and was once used to make gunpowder charcoal for industrial purposes. Despite its various applications throughout human history, Frangula alnus has been declared invasive in some countries due to its ability to crowd out other vegetation in certain habitats such as riparian areas due to bird dispersal of seeds thereby displacing native species .