GOLDTHREAD
Coptis groenlandica
COMMON NAMES: Mouth root, yellow root, canker root, vegetable gold.
FEATURES: Goldthread is found growing in dark swamps and mossy woods in northern parts of the United
States, Canada, Iceland, Siberia, and India.
The plant has a small, creeping perennial root of many fibers and a bright yellow color, faint odor, and
bitter taste without astringency. The leaves are evergreen, on long, slender 1-foot-long stalks, growing
three together. The white and yellow starlike flowers grow on a separate stem, rising to the same height as
the leaves. They flower early in the spring to July, followed by oblong capsules containing many small
black seeds. Autumn is the proper season for collecting this creation from above.
MEDICINAL PART: Root.
SOLVENTS: Boiling water, dilute alcohol.
BODILY INFLUENCE: Tonic.
USES: Exactingly helpful as a mouthwash for canker sores, gargle for sore throat, and for ulcers of both
stomach and throat. It may be beneficially used in all cases where a bitter tonic is required, such as
dyspepsia and chronic inflammation of the stomach. It is a good herb to give to children occasionally as a
tonic; it invigorates the stomach and is a preventive of pinworms. It may be given alone or in combination
with other suitable medicines; it promotes digestion, improves the appetite, and acts as a general
stimulant to the system. In convalescence it is highly beneficial. Made into a decoction, goldthread
(Coptis groenlandica) and goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) will often release the driving desire for
alcoholic beverages.
DOSE: The tincture, made by adding 1 ounce of the powdered root to 1 pint of diluted alcohol, is
preferable to the powder. The dose is 20 drops to 1 teaspoonful, three times a day. As a tea, steep 1
teaspoonful of the granulated root in 1 cup of boiling water for ½ hour, strain, take 1 tablespoonful three
to six times a day.