Ptelea trifoliata
Quick Facts
- What it is: A minor homeopathic remedy made from the bark of the North American hop tree, diluted until almost nothing of the plant is left.
- Main uses: Indigestion and heartburn (traditional), Dull pain under the right ribs (traditional), Wheezing that is worse lying down (traditional)
- Best for: People already working with a homeopath who want this specific remedy
- Active ingredients: None measurable at 30C, Mother tincture only: bitter alkaloids, quinoline compounds, furanocoumarins (sun-reactive plant chemicals)
- Forms: Sugar pellets (6C, 12C, 30C), Liquid drops in alcohol, Mother tincture (plain plant extract)
- Time to effect: No reliable timing; trials show no effect beyond a dummy pill.
- Side effects: Rare at high dilutions; stomach upset, rash and sun-sensitive skin can come from the mother tincture.
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What is Ptelea trifoliata?
Ptelea trifoliata is a homeopathic remedy. It is a single drug (Homeopathy), and the Latin name is Ptelea trifoliata. Most people call it wafer ash or hop tree.
It is made from the bark and root bark of a small North American tree. Homeopaths have used it for stomach and liver complaints. The old texts point to a dull ache under the right ribs, a bitter taste in the mouth, and wheezing at night.
The remedy is serially diluted. At 30C the plant was mixed one part into 100 parts, thirty times over, so almost no plant matter is left. Trials do not show that it works better than a dummy pill (placebo).
Long use in a tradition is not proof that a remedy works. We report the traditional record and the trial record as two separate things.
How does Ptelea trifoliata work?
The plain answer: no one has shown how it could work. There is no known way for a 30C dilution to act on the body, because there is almost nothing left in it.
Homeopathy rests on two ideas. The first is "like cures like", which means a substance that causes a symptom is used, in tiny amounts, to treat that symptom. The second is that shaking and diluting make a remedy stronger, not weaker.
Neither idea matches what we know about chemistry or the body. The claim that water holds a "memory" of the plant has no support from lab work.
Low dilutions and the mother tincture are different. They still hold plant matter, so they can act on the body and can cause side effects.
What forms does Ptelea trifoliata come in?
Common forms you will see:
Sugar pellets, pills or tablets, sold as 6C, 12C or 30C. Liquid drops in alcohol, at the same strengths. Mother tincture, marked "MT" or "1X", which is a plain plant extract and is not a high dilution.
The pellets and high-dilution drops hold almost no plant matter. The mother tincture holds a lot. Read the label, because the two are not the same thing.
Where it comes from:
Native peoples in eastern North America used wafer ash bark as a bitter tonic for poor digestion. Settler herbalists picked it up and used it the same way.
Homeopaths added it to their materia medica in the 1800s. It appears in the old texts of Clarke and Boericke, mostly for right-sided liver pain and for asthma that gets worse lying down.
It has always been a minor remedy. It was never a first-choice medicine in any tradition.
Who should avoid Ptelea trifoliata?
- Do not use if you have yellow skin or eyes, dark urine, or bad pain under your right ribs — these signs need a doctor straight away, not a remedy.
- Do not use if you are having an asthma attack; use your prescribed inhaler and get medical help.
- Do not use if you are thinking of it as a swap for a medicine your doctor gave you for your liver, heart or lungs.
- Do not use if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, unless your own doctor says it is fine.
- Do not use if you are giving it to a baby or a young child without a doctor's advice.
- Do not use if you avoid alcohol: in recovery, in pregnancy, or while taking disulfiram or metronidazole (drugs that clash with alcohol) — because the drops are alcohol-based.
- Do not use if you are allergic to rue, citrus or other plants in the same family.
- Do not use if you want the mother tincture (the plain plant extract) and will be out in strong sun, as your skin may burn fast.
- Do not use if you have a liver problem and want the mother tincture or a low dilution, unless a doctor checks first.
- Do not use if you have diabetes and plan to take many sugar pellets a day without counting the sugar.
When should you see a doctor?
See a doctor now if your skin or eyes turn yellow, your urine goes dark, or the pain under your right ribs is bad or will not stop. Get help the same day for a fever with belly pain, for vomiting that will not stop, or for blood in your vomit or stools.
Call emergency services if you cannot breathe, cannot speak in full sentences, or your lips look blue.
Book a normal appointment if your stomach or bowel symptoms last more than two weeks, or if you keep needing a remedy week after week.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
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