Mountain Ash

Sore, raw throat with hoarseness, gargled as an infusion of the dried, cooked berries

Loose, watery stools with no sign of active infection, calling for the astringent cooked berry preparation

Overview. Sorbus aucuparia, commonly called mountain ash or rowan, is a small deciduous tree of the rose family native to Europe and northern Asia and widely naturalized in North America. Its bright orange-red berries, gathered in autumn after the first frosts soften their acidity, have long been used in European folk and eclectic medicine as a food and a mild astringent remedy. The berries were traditionally cooked, dried, or fermented into preserves, syrups, and wines, both as a pleasant sour food and as a home remedy for sore throats and looseness of the bowels.

Clinical Notes. Rowan berries are best considered a gentle, food-grade astringent and nutritive rather than a potent medicinal agent. A cooled infusion or syrup of the cooked, dried fruit makes a pleasant gargle for a raw, hoarse throat, and the same preparation taken internally in small amounts has traditionally settled simple diarrhea, likely through its tannin and organic acid content.