Ctenium aromaticum

Ctenium aromaticum is a species of grass known by the common name toothache grass. It is native to the southeastern United States, where it grows on the coastal plain.[1]

Ctenium aromaticum

Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Genus: Ctenium
Species:
C. aromaticum
Binomial name
Ctenium aromaticum
(Walter) Alph.Wood

This is a perennial grass that forms clumps of stems reaching 1 to 1.5 meters in maximum height. The leaves are up to 46 centimeters long. The inflorescence is a panicle with one branch that is up to 15 centimeters long and lined on one side with two rows of spikelets. Each spikelet is roughly a centimeter long.[1]

It is not known whether or not the grass was ever used as a remedy for toothache. It has, however, been used as a sialagogue, an agent that increases saliva. The crushed roots have a strong scent.[2] The lower part of the stem produces a numbing sensation when it is chewed.[3] The agents responsible for this action are isobutylamides.[4]

References
  1. Ctenium aromaticum. Archived 2015-05-18 at the Wayback Machine Grass Manual Treatment.
  2. Austin, D. F. and P. N. Ionychurch. Florida Ethnobotany. CRC Press 2004.
  3. Ctenium aromaticum. USDA NRCS Plant Fact Sheet.
  4. Gamboa-Leon, R. and W. S. Chilton. (2000). Isobutylamide numbing agents of toothache grass, Ctenium aromaticum. Archived 2015-05-18 at the Wayback Machine Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 28 1019-1021.
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