Wild licorice

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Wild licorice pods

Wild licorice fruit

Wild licorice

Wild licorice pods

Wild licorice

Wild licorice inflorescences

Wild licorice leaflets

Wild licorice inflorescence

Morphology

Stem

Erect or ascending, 1 to several, mostly unbranched, glabrous or minutely hairy, ribbed when dry.

Leaves

Alternate, stalked, odd-pinnately compound; leaflets 7-21, lanceolate or oblong, 1 to 2.75 inches long, .25 to .75 inch wide, glandular-sticky, mid-vein beneath often pubescent; margins entire; tips end in short, abrupt points.

Inflorescence

Racemes, spike-like, 1 to 2 inches long, erect, densely flowered, terminal on stout stalks .5 to 2.75 inches long, in leaf axils.

Flower

About 1/2 inch long, creamy-white or white; calyces deeply and sharply 5-lobed; corollas papilionaceous; stamens 10, in 2 sets.

Fruit

Pods, oblong, 1/2 to 3/4 inch long, densely covered with hooked prickles, reddish brown; seeds 3-5, kidney-shaped, smooth, olive green to brownish.

Ecology

Habitat

Moist, open prairie ravines, stream valleys, roadsides, and waste areas.

Distribution

Throughout Kansas.

Practical Information

Forage Value

Deer will consume the foliage, and upland game birds will eat the seeds.

Uses

Native Americans chewed the root of wild licorice to sooth toothaches; used a liquid made from the roots to treat stomachaches, sore throats, and coughs; and chewed the leaves and applied the mixture to sores on horses.

Additional Notes