Butcher’s Broom: Its History and Medicinal Uses

Ruscus aculeatus

Another unsuspecting plant I often see on my morning walk is butcher’s broom. It grows in patches as I walk through a once-tended Victorian woodland garden, cared for by the gardener of the old Victorian Gothic villa. A life that once was, with the names of those who lived and worked here known to me through the census. It is truly enchanting to walk through an old Victorian garden reclaimed by nature, following the same footsteps as the gardeners who came before me.

This morning, I decided to pick up a piece of butcher’s broom that had snapped off and dried, so I could take it home to try and press it, and to draw it too. I discovered, when trying to get it into the press, just how prickly it is. Ouch!

As always, when I take a plant home to study, I look into everything about it. Its history: is it native or was it introduced? How was it used? Was it medicinal? How does it support wildlife and the environment? All these questions lead me to discover so many interesting things.

A plant with a prickly past

Butcher’s broom has a long history of practical uses, and its prickly nature is a large part of its story.

Historically, bundles of butcher’s broom were used to scrub sculleries and butcher’s blocks. Its stiff, sharp growth made it useful for cleaning, while its prickly stems were also placed around stored meat to help deter rodents. It is easy to see how the plant acquired its rather practical common name.

Interestingly, butcher’s broom is a relative of asparagus. Its young shoots were traditionally eaten in much the same way, although asparagus became the more popular choice once it was successfully cultivated in kitchen gardens. Its bright red berries, however, are poisonous and should not be eaten.

Nicholas Culpeper, the seventeenth-century herbalist, described butcher’s broom as being “of a dark green colour, with almost round hard leaves that are prickly and pointed at the end”. He certainly wasn’t wrong! Those prickly structures are sharp, as I discovered for myself while trying to press my little specimen this morning.

Butcher’s broom as a medicinal plant

One of the things I love about studying plants is discovering how our ancestors used the plants growing around them, and how some of those traditional uses have continued into modern herbal literature.

In Prescription for Natural Cures, Dr James F. Balch and Dr Mark Stengler discuss butcher’s broom in relation to haemorrhoids and varicose veins. The roots and underground stems, known as rhizomes, have been used in herbal preparations, including tinctures, tablets and capsules.

Dr James A. Duke also discusses medicinal plants and their uses in The Green Pharmacy. Butcher’s broom contains compounds called ruscogenins, which are associated with anti-inflammatory and vasoconstrictive activity. Vasoconstriction is the narrowing of blood vessels, which helps explain the interest in this plant in relation to venous circulation.

David Hoffmann, in Medical Herbalism, also discusses the chemical constituents of medicinal plants, including compounds found in butcher’s broom. The plant contains steroidal saponins, including ruscogenins, which have attracted interest because of their potential effects on inflammation and blood vessels.

Christine Iverson also notes in her forager’s card deck that butcher’s broom was historically used as a remedy for kidney stones, poor circulation, gout and jaundice.

It is fascinating to discover how many different uses have been attributed to a single plant over the centuries. However, traditional use and research into plant compounds do not automatically mean that a remedy is proven to be effective or safe. Butcher’s broom should not be used as a substitute for medical advice or treatment. As always, please conduct your own research and always consult a professional.

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Looking at butcher’s broom with fresh eyes

For me, this is what makes learning about the plants around us so rewarding. A plant that might otherwise go unnoticed on a morning walk suddenly becomes a connection to the past: to the people who tended these gardens, the practical knowledge they carried, and the ways they made use of what grew around them.

As I walk through this old Victorian woodland garden, I find myself wondering what the gardeners before me knew about the plants they tended. Did they use butcher’s broom in the kitchen garden? Did they collect it for its traditional medicinal uses, or simply leave it growing amongst the trees?

I may never know the answers, but I can continue to learn from the plants themselves, one discovery at a time.

And next time I pass a patch of butcher’s broom, I shall certainly admire it from a little further away!

Do you know any interesting facts about butcher’s broom? I would love to hear them. Let us know in the comments below.

References & Further Reading

1. Balch, J. F., Stengler, M. and Young Balch, R. (2016). Prescription for Natural Cures: A Self-Care Guide for Treating Health Problems with Natural Remedies Including Diet, Nutrition, Supplements, and Other Holistic Methods. Revised 3rd edition. Turner Publishing Company. Pg 606, ISBN: 9781630260903.

2. Duke, J. A. (1998). The Green Pharmacy: The Ultimate Compendium of Natural Remedies from the World's Foremost Authority on Healing Herbs. St. Martin’s Press. Pg 230, ISBN: 9780312966485.

3. Hoffmann, D. (2003). Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine. Healing Arts Press. Pg 83, ISBN: 9780892817498.

4. Culpeper, N. (1653). The Complete Herbal. Entry: “Butcher’s Broom.” The original work contains a description of the plant and its traditional herbal uses.

5. Iverson, C. (2025) Forager’s card deck. The Hedgerow Apothecary.