Allspice
(Pigments officinalis)
Common Names: Clove Pepper, Jamaica Pepper, Pimento.
Medicinal Part: Fruit.
Description: Allspice is the dried berry of the pimento, an evergreen tree growing as high as 40 feet in the West Indies, S. America, Central America, and Mexico. It bears opposite, leathery, oblong to oblong-lanceolate leaves whose pinnately arranged veins show prominently on the underside. Small white flowers grow in many-flowered cymes in the upper leaf axils from June to August. The fruit is a fleshy, sweet, sweet berry which is purplish-black when ripe. The berries used for allspice, however, are collected when they have reached full size but are not yet ripe. The name comes from the berry’s taste, which has been described as a combination of cloves, juniper berries, cinnamon, and pepper.
Properties and Uses: Aromatic, carminative, stimulant. Pimento water and Oil of pimento are useful in cases of flatulent indigestion or simple flatulence; the oil has also been recommended for hysterical paroxysms. Taken with laxatives, the oil lessens the tendency to gripe: the water also makes a good vehicle for less palatable medicines. As an ointment or a bath additive, allspice is said to have some anesthetic effects. Allspice makes a stimulating plaster for rheumatism and neuralgia.
Preparation and Dosage:
Pimento Water: Combine 5 parts crushed berries with 200 parts water and distill down to half the original volume. A dose is from 1 to 2 fluid ounces.
Oil: A dose is from 2 to 5 drops. For flatulence, take 2 or 3 drops on sugar(Herbalist: It helps the medicine go down.)
Powder: A dose is from 10 to 30 grains.
Plaster: Boil crushed berries in water until mixture is thick enough to spread on a linen cloth.
