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Sassafras
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<h2 id="description">Description</h2> <p>Sassafras trees grow from 9–35 metres (30–115 feet) tall with many slender <a href="/facts/Sympodial/3WR5Urdm">sympodial</a> branches and smooth, orange-brown bark or yellow bark.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> All parts of the plants are fragrant. The species are unusual in having three distinct <a href="/facts/Leaf/1m6wCNTg">leaf</a> patterns on the same plant: unlobed oval, bilobed (mitten-shaped), and trilobed (three-pronged); the leaves are hardly ever five-lobed.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> Three-lobed leaves are more common in <i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_tzumu/rjVu3yCT">Sassafras tzumu</a></i> and <i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_randaiense/dJsk65N2">S. randaiense</a></i> than in their North American counterparts, although three-lobed leaves often occur on <i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_albidum/7Ih95Bm5">S. albidum</a></i>. The young leaves and twigs are quite <a href="/facts/Mucilaginous/y7Da78J4">mucilaginous</a> and produce a citrus-like scent when crushed. The tiny, yellow <a href="/facts/Flower/7gI5Kefw">flowers</a> are generally six-petaled; <i>S. albidum</i> and (the extinct) <i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_hesperia/ry9PqsgA">S. hesperia</a></i> are <a href="/facts/Dioecious/jwMHLkuM">dioecious</a>, with male and female flowers on separate trees, while <i>S. tzumu</i> and <i>S. randaiense</i> have male and female flowers occurring on the same trees. The <a href="/facts/Fruit/PBpuzk60">fruit</a> is a <a href="/facts/Drupe/WrnGMPSa">drupe</a>, blue-black when ripe.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> </p> <p>The largest known sassafras tree in the world is in <a href="/facts/Owensboro,_Kentucky/32kombDB">Owensboro, Kentucky</a>, and is over 30 m (100 ft) high and 6.4 m (21 ft) in circumference.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="taxonomy">Taxonomy</h2> <p>The genus <i>Sassafras</i> was first described by the <a href="/facts/Bohemia/Wbr8gt6l">Bohemian</a> botanist <a href="/facts/Jan_Presl/trXvkll3">Jan Presl</a> in 1825.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> The name "sassafras", applied by the botanist <a href="/facts/Nicolas_Monardes/Nc0f4mMl">Nicolas Monardes</a> in 1569, comes from the French <i>sassafras</i>. Some sources claim it originates from the Latin <i>saxifraga</i> or <i>saxifragus</i>: "stone-breaking"; <i>saxum</i> "rock" + <i>frangere</i> "to break").<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> Sassafras trees are not within the family <a href="/facts/Saxifragaceae/mjgl2X2r">Saxifragaceae</a>. </p><p>Early European colonists reported that the plant was called <i>winauk</i> by Native Americans in Delaware and Virginia and <i>pauane</i> by the <a href="/facts/Timucua/JJQjMzWp">Timucua</a>. Native Americans distinguished between white sassafras and red sassafras, terms which referred to different parts of the same plant but with distinct colors and uses.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a> Sassafras was known as fennel wood (German <i>Fenchelholz</i>) due to its distinctive aroma.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> </p> <h3>Species</h3> <p>The genus <i>Sassafras</i> includes four species, three extant and one extinct. Sassafras plants are endemic to North America and East Asia, with two species in each region that are distinguished by some important characteristics, including the frequency of three-lobed leaves (more frequent in East Asian species) and aspects of their sexual reproduction (North American species being dioecious). </p><p>Taiwanese sassafras, <a href="/facts/Taiwan/VcJoUD8w">Taiwan</a>, is treated by some botanists in a distinct genus as <i>Yushunia randaiensis</i> (Hayata) Kamikoti, though this is not supported by recent genetic evidence, which shows <i>Sassafras</i> to be <a href="/facts/Monophyletic/pD8Yrrn6">monophyletic</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a> </p> <h4>North America</h4> <ul><li><i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_albidum/7Ih95Bm5">Sassafras albidum</a></i> (Nuttall) Nees – sassafras, white sassafras, red sassafras, or silky sassafras, eastern North America, from southernmost <a href="/facts/Ontario/HUkxk5Rf">Ontario</a>, <a href="/facts/Canada/cWWFM8oc">Canada</a> through the eastern <a href="/facts/United_States/P0sCdLe5">United States</a>, south to central <a href="/facts/Florida/cF245A3Q">Florida</a>, and west to southern <a href="/facts/Iowa/taAwUvKE">Iowa</a> and <a href="/facts/East_Texas/uCUSEAyy">East Texas</a>, formerly, Wisconsin<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a></li> <li>†<i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_hesperia/ry9PqsgA">Sassafras hesperia</a></i> (Berry) – western North American, from the <a href="/facts/Eocene/EYgI8Uco">Eocene</a> <a href="/facts/Klondike_Mountain_Formation/zV9PQXbd">Klondike Mountain Formation</a> of <a href="/facts/Washington_(state)/7tCrTFnN">Washington</a> and <a href="/facts/British_Columbia/Ty3e3g1Q">British Columbia</a>;<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17"><sup>17</sup></a> extinct, known only from fossils.</li></ul> <h4>East Asia</h4> <ul><li><i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_tzumu/rjVu3yCT">Sassafras tzumu</a></i> (Hemsl.) Hemsl. – Chinese sassafras or <i>tzumu</i>, central and southwestern <a href="/facts/China/lTjIXY5p">China</a></li> <li><i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_randaiense/dJsk65N2">Sassafras randaiense</a></i> (Hayata) Rehd. – Taiwan</li></ul> <h2 id="distribution-and-habitat">Distribution and habitat</h2> <p>Many <a href="/facts/Lauraceae/PPnQfy5n">Lauraceae</a> are aromatic, <a href="/facts/Evergreen/bcLptUdV">evergreen</a> trees or shrubs adapted to high rainfall and humidity, but the genus <i>Sassafras</i> is <a href="/facts/Deciduous/7jQHVtdd">deciduous</a>. Deciduous sassafras trees lose all of their <a href="/facts/Leaves/1m6wCNTg">leaves</a> for part of the year, depending on variations in <a href="/facts/Rain/MLqcQEyx">rainfall</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18"><sup>18</sup></a> In deciduous tropical Lauraceae, leaf loss coincides with the <a href="/facts/Dry_season/jjdnthUQ">dry season</a> in tropical, subtropical and arid regions. </p><p>Sassafras is commonly found in open woods, along fences, or in fields. It grows well in moist, well-drained, or sandy loam soils and tolerates a variety of soil types, attaining a maximum in southern and wetter areas of distribution.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19"><sup>19</sup></a> </p><p><i>Sassafras albidum</i> ranges from southern Maine and southern Ontario west to Iowa, and south to central Florida and eastern Texas, in North America. <i>S. tzumu</i> may be found in Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang, China.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:20" href="#fn:20"><sup>20</sup></a> <i>S. randaiense</i> is native to Taiwan.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:21" href="#fn:21"><sup>21</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="ecology">Ecology</h2> <p>The leaves, bark, twigs, stems, and fruits are eaten by birds and mammals in small quantities. For most animals, sassafras is not consumed in large enough quantities to be important, although it is an important deer food in some areas. Carey and Gill rate its value to wildlife as fair, their lowest rating. Sassafras leaves and twigs are consumed by <a href="/facts/White-tailed_deer/Y8FXTnhj">white-tailed deer</a> and <a href="/facts/Porcupine/uv39498A">porcupines</a>. Other sassafras leaf browsers include <a href="/facts/Groundhog/lSqL68ye">groundhogs</a>, <a href="/facts/Marsh_rabbit/l8467G7J">marsh rabbits</a>, and <a href="/facts/American_black_bear/lezPKsnd">American black bears</a>. Rabbits eat sassafras bark in winter. <a href="/facts/American_beaver/mJKK0GdM">American beavers</a> will cut sassafras stems. Sassafras fruits are eaten by many species of birds, including <a href="/facts/Bobwhite_quail/jnE7he9B">bobwhite quail</a>, <a href="/facts/Eastern_kingbird/kRAShCRo">eastern kingbirds</a>, <a href="/facts/Great_crested_flycatcher/1jBGpRYv">great crested flycatchers</a>, <a href="/facts/Phoebe_(bird)/DR7Bwffu">phoebes</a>, <a href="/facts/Wild_turkey/8mffpGov">wild turkeys</a>, <a href="/facts/Grey_catbird/DhGRLl12">gray catbirds</a>, <a href="/facts/Northern_flicker/0ts7QvbL">northern flickers</a>, <a href="/facts/Pileated_woodpecker/dyKgNvcN">pileated woodpeckers</a>, <a href="/facts/Downy_woodpecker/76HMrKX9">downy woodpeckers</a>, <a href="/facts/Thrush_(bird)/tg6Dw7Nh">thrushes</a>, <a href="/facts/Vireo/7Q7htD6A">vireos</a>, and <a href="/facts/Northern_mockingbird/gKtARHur">northern mockingbirds</a>. Some small mammals also consume sassafras fruits.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:22" href="#fn:22"><sup>22</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="toxicity">Toxicity</h2> <p>Sassafras oil contains <a href="/facts/Safrole/Xp2qz89H">safrole</a>, which may have a <a href="/facts/Carcinogen/soH8Y9CE">carcinogenic</a> effect.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:23" href="#fn:23"><sup>23</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:24" href="#fn:24"><sup>24</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="uses">Uses</h2> <p>All parts of sassafras plants, including roots, stems, twig leaves, bark, flowers, and fruit, have been used for culinary, medicinal, and aromatic purposes, both in areas where they are endemic and in areas where they were imported, such as Europe. The wood of sassafras trees has been used as a material for building ships and furniture in China, Europe, and the United States, and sassafras played an important role in the history of the <a href="/facts/European_colonization_of_the_Americas/1HImQual">European colonization of the Americas</a> in the 16th and 17th centuries. Sassafras twigs have been used as <a href="/facts/Toothbrush/68A9G5ng">toothbrushes</a> and fire starters.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:25" href="#fn:25"><sup>25</sup></a> </p> <h3>Culinary</h3> <p class="note">See <a href="/facts/Sassafras_albidum/7Ih95Bm5"><i>Sassafras albidum</i> § Culinary use</a> for more information on culinary use specific to the extant North American species, and legislation in the United States restricting the use of products derived from sassafras.</p> <p><i>Sassafras albidum</i> is an important ingredient in some distinct foods of the US. It has been the main ingredient in traditional <a href="/facts/Root_beer/WC36LC4o">root beers</a> and sassafras root teas, and the ground leaves of sassafras are a distinctive additive in Louisiana's <a href="/facts/Cajun_cuisine/b6tPhozl">Cajun cuisine</a>. Sassafras is used in <a href="/facts/Fil%C3%A9_powder/qDUcSDho">filé powder</a>, a common thickening and flavoring agent in Louisiana <a href="/facts/Gumbo/zQzGnTjU">gumbo</a>. Methods of cooking with sassafras combine this ingredient native to America with traditional North American and European culinary techniques; they contribute to the unique Creole cuisine, which is heavily influenced by the blend of cultures in Louisiana and other states along the <a href="/facts/Gulf_of_Mexico/bGE5s57G">Gulf</a> coast.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:26" href="#fn:26"><sup>26</sup></a> </p><p>Sassafras, once a key ingredient in commercial American root beers, is no longer used, as its oil was banned in 1960 by the US <a href="/facts/Food_and_Drug_Administration/rCEnh9WB">Food and Drug Administration</a> (FDA) in all commercially mass-produced foods and medications. The FDA's directive was in response to health concerns about the carcinogenicity of safrole, a major constituent of sassafras oil, in animal studies.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:27" href="#fn:27"><sup>27</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:28" href="#fn:28"><sup>28</sup></a> </p><p>Sassafras leaves and flowers have also been used in salads, and to flavor fats or cure meats.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:29" href="#fn:29"><sup>29</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:30" href="#fn:30"><sup>30</sup></a> The young twigs can also be eaten fresh or dried. Additionally, the subterranean portion of the plant can be peeled, dried and boiled to make tea.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:31" href="#fn:31"><sup>31</sup></a> </p> <h3>Traditional medicine</h3> <p>Numerous <a href="/facts/Indigenous_peoples_in_the_United_States/lr8Qmd6N">Native American</a> tribes used the leaves of sassafras to treat wounds by rubbing the leaves directly into a wound and used different parts of the plant for many medicinal purposes such as treating acne, urinary disorders, and sicknesses that increased body temperature, such as high fevers.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:32" href="#fn:32"><sup>32</sup></a> East Asian types of sassafras such as <i>S. tzumu</i> (chu mu) and <i>S. randaiense</i> (chu shu) are used in Chinese medicine to treat <a href="/facts/Rheumatism/VjLF3D3n">rheumatism</a> and <a href="/facts/Trauma_(medicine)/PJ7CbnMQ">trauma</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:33" href="#fn:33"><sup>33</sup></a> Some modern researchers conclude that the oil, roots and bark of sassafras have <a href="/facts/Analgesic/xLj4XBcq">analgesic</a> and <a href="/facts/Antiseptic/ua05WK9M">antiseptic</a> properties. Different parts of the sassafras plant (including the leaves and stems, the bark, and the roots) have been used to treat <a href="/facts/Scurvy/VEpTjUWM">scurvy</a>, skin sores, kidney problems, toothaches, <a href="/facts/Rheumatism/VjLF3D3n">rheumatism</a>, swelling, <a href="/facts/Menstruation/7cv4HzLe">menstrual</a> disorders, <a href="/facts/Sexually_transmitted_diseases/IYL1rxdI">sexually transmitted diseases</a>, <a href="/facts/Bronchitis/IATP1XWJ">bronchitis</a>, <a href="/facts/Hypertension/wlAvBfcf">hypertension</a>, and <a href="/facts/Dysentery/l0yfLtg3">dysentery</a>. It is also used as a fungicide, dentifrice, rubefacient, diaphoretic, perfume, carminative and sudorific.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:34" href="#fn:34"><sup>34</sup></a> Before the twentieth century, Sassafras enjoyed a great reputation in the medical literature, but became valued for its power to improve the flavor of other medicines.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:35" href="#fn:35"><sup>35</sup></a> </p><p>Sassafras root was an early export from North America, as early as 1609.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:36" href="#fn:36"><sup>36</sup></a> </p><p>Sassafras wood and oil were both used in dentistry. Early toothbrushes were crafted from sassafras twigs or wood because of its aromatic properties.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:37" href="#fn:37"><sup>37</sup></a> Sassafras was also used as an early dental anesthetic and disinfectant.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:38" href="#fn:38"><sup>38</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:39" href="#fn:39"><sup>39</sup></a> </p> <h3>Wood</h3> <p><i>Sassafras albidum</i> is often grown as an <a href="/facts/Ornamental_tree/ImyCDwMW">ornamental tree</a> for its unusual leaves and aromatic scent. Outside of its native area, it is occasionally cultivated in <a href="/facts/Europe/DTAtrKfh">Europe</a> and elsewhere.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:40" href="#fn:40"><sup>40</sup></a> The durable and beautiful wood of sassafras plants has been used in shipbuilding and furniture-making in North America, in Asia, and in Europe (once Europeans were introduced to the plant).<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:41" href="#fn:41"><sup>41</sup></a> Sassafras wood was also used by Native Americans in the southeastern United States as a fire-starter because of the flammability of its natural oils found within the wood and the leaves.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:42" href="#fn:42"><sup>42</sup></a> </p> <h3>Oil and aroma</h3> <p><a href="/facts/Steam_distillation/tYEIIkqq">Steam distillation</a> of dried root bark produces an <a href="/facts/Essential_oil/cq8V5ocP">essential oil</a> which has a high safrole content, as well as significant amounts of varying other chemicals such as <a href="/facts/Camphor/53KvP2Rw">camphor</a>, <a href="/facts/Eugenol/3WqJ0xko">eugenol</a> (including 5-methoxyeugenol), <a href="/facts/Asarone/HSv3fTbB">asarone</a>, and various <a href="/facts/Sesquiterpene/rFJG50mL">sesquiterpenes</a>. Many other trees contain similarly high percentages and their extracted oils are sometimes referred to as sassafras oil,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:43" href="#fn:43"><sup>43</sup></a> which once was extensively used as a fragrance in perfumes and soaps, food and for <a href="/facts/Aromatherapy/Lkaex3Br">aromatherapy</a>. Safrole is a precursor for the <a href="/facts/Clandestine_chemistry/7h0ljKSs">clandestine manufacture</a> of the drugs <a href="/facts/3,4-Methylenedioxyamphetamine/YjRV1YN4">MDA</a> and <a href="/facts/MDMA/WYDACxGN">MDMA</a>, and as such, sales and import of sassafras oil (as a safrole-containing mixture of above-threshold concentration) are heavily restricted in the US.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:44" href="#fn:44"><sup>44</sup></a> </p><p>Sassafras oil has also been used as a natural insect or pest deterrent, and in <a href="/facts/Liqueur/wVeQyoK9">liqueurs</a> (such as the opium-based <a href="/facts/Godfrey%27s_Cordial/MNX925kv">Godfrey's Cordial</a>), and in homemade liquor to mask strong or unpleasant smells.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:45" href="#fn:45"><sup>45</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:46" href="#fn:46"><sup>46</sup></a> Sassafras oil has also been added to soap and other toiletries.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:47" href="#fn:47"><sup>47</sup></a> It is banned in the United States for use in commercially mass-produced foods and drugs by the <a href="/facts/U.S._Food_and_Drug_Administration/rCEnh9WB">FDA</a> as a potential <a href="/facts/Carcinogen/soH8Y9CE">carcinogen</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:48" href="#fn:48"><sup>48</sup></a> </p> <h3>Commercial use</h3> <p>For a more detailed description of uses by indigenous peoples of North America, and a history of the commercial use of <i>Sassafras albidum</i> by Europeans in the United States in the 16th and 17th centuries, see the article on the extant North American species of sassafras, <i><a href="/facts/Sassafras_albidum/7Ih95Bm5">Sassafras albidum</a></i>. </p><p>In modern times, the sassafras plant has been grown and harvested for the extraction of sassafras oil. It is used in a variety of commercial products or their syntheses, such as the insecticide synergistic compound <a href="/facts/Piperonyl_butoxide/FyrfT62Y">piperonyl butoxide</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:49" href="#fn:49"><sup>49</sup></a> These plants are primarily harvested for commercial purposes in Asia and Brazil.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:50" href="#fn:50"><sup>50</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="http://www.arhomeandgarden.org/plantoftheweek/articles/sassafras.htm">U of Arkansas: Division of Agriculture Plant of the Week: Sassafras</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.gardenguides.com/plants/plantguides/shrubs/plantguide.asp?symbol=SAAL5">GardenGuides.com Sassafras – Shrub Plant Guide</a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090424022419/http://www.pfaf.org/leaflets/sassafra.php">Plants for a Future: Plant Portrait – Sassafras albidum</a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20031210035025/http://www.tva.gov/river/landandshore/stabilization/plants/sassafras.htm">TVA: Native Plant – Sassafras</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.missouriplants.com/Yellowalt/Sassafras_albidum_page.html">Missouri Plants – Sassafras albidum</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.monticello.org/library/exhibits/lucymarks/gallery/sassafras.html">The Jefferson Monticello: The Lucy Meriwether Lewis Marks exhibit – article by Wendy Cortesi</a></li> <li><a href="http://www.fossilmuseum.net/plantfossils/Sassafras-hesperia/Sassafras.htm">FossilMuseum.net: Rare Sassafras Plant Fossils</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/sasalb/all.html">US Forest Service</a></li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>van der Werff, Henk (1997). "Sassafras". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 3. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA. <a href="http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=129310" target="_blank">http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=129310</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Wolfe, Jack A. & Wehr, Wesley C. 1987. The sassafras is an ornamental tree. "Middle Eocene Dicotyledonous Plants from Republic, Northeastern Washington". United States Geological Survey Bulletin 1597:13 <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Nie, Z.-L.; Wen, J.; Sun, H. (2007). "Phylogeny and biogeography of Sassafras (Lauraceae) disjunction between eastern Asia and eastern North America". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 267 (1–4): 191–203. Bibcode:2007PSyEv.267..191N. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.669.8487. doi:10.1007/s00606-007-0550-1. S2CID 44051126. <a href="/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Dirr, Michael (2009). Manual of Woody Landscape Plants: Their Identification, Ornamental Characteristics, Culture, Propagation and Uses (6th ed.). Stipes Publishing. p. 938. ISBN 9781588748706. <a href="9781588748706" target="_blank">9781588748706</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>Noble Plant Image Gallery Sassafras (includes photo of five-lobed leaf) <a href="https://nobleapps.noble.org/plantimagegallery/Plant.aspx?PlantID=97&IndexType=CommonName&PlantMainName=Sassafras&PlantTypeID=3" target="_blank">https://nobleapps.noble.org/plantimagegallery/Plant.aspx?PlantID=97&IndexType=CommonName&PlantMainName=Sassafras&PlantTypeID=3</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>van der Werff, Henk (1997). "Sassafras". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). Vol. 3. 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Gard. 3: 78 <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>Griggs, Margene M. (1990). "Sassafras albidum". In Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H. (eds.). Hardwoods. Silvics of North America. Vol. 2. Washington, D.C.: United States Forest Service (USFS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) – via Southern Research Station. <a href="https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/misc/ag_654/volume_2/sassafras/albidum.htm" target="_blank">https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/misc/ag_654/volume_2/sassafras/albidum.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:17"><p>Wolfe, Jack A. & Wehr, Wesley C. 1987. The sassafras is an ornamental tree. "Middle Eocene Dicotyledonous Plants from Republic, Northeastern Washington". United States Geological Survey Bulletin 1597:13 <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:18"><p>Pallardy, Stephen G.; Kozlowski, T. T. (2010). Physiology of woody plants (3rd ed.). Amsterdam: Elsevier. p. 75. ISBN 9780080568713. OCLC 228148187. <a href="9780080568713" target="_blank">9780080568713</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:19"><p>Small, Ernest (September 23, 2013). North American Cornucopia: Top 100 Indigenous Food Plants. CRC Press. pp. 603–606. ISBN 978-1-4665-8592-8. <a href="978-1-4665-8592-8" target="_blank">978-1-4665-8592-8</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:20"><p>Wiersema, John; León, Blanca (February 26, 1999). World Economic Plants: A Standard Reference. CRC Press. p. 616. ISBN 978-0-8493-2119-1. <a href="978-0-8493-2119-1" target="_blank">978-0-8493-2119-1</a> <a href="#fnref:20" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:21"><p>Nie, Z.-L.; Wen, J.; Sun, H. (2007). "Phylogeny and biogeography of Sassafras (Lauraceae) disjunct between eastern Asia and eastern North America". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 267 (1–4): 0378–2697. Bibcode:2007PSyEv.267..191N. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.669.8487. doi:10.1007/s00606-007-0550-1. S2CID 44051126. <a href="/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:21" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:22"><p>This section incorporates text from a public domain work of the US government: Sullivan, Janet (1993). "Sassafras albidum". Fire Effects Information System (FEIS). US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service (USFS), Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/sasalb/all.html" target="_blank">https://www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/tree/sasalb/all.html</a> <a href="#fnref:22" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:23"><p>Dietz, B; Bolton, Jl (Apr 2007). "Botanical dietary supplements gone bad". Chemical Research in Toxicology. 20 (4): 586–90. doi:10.1021/tx7000527. ISSN 0893-228X. PMC 2504026. PMID 17362034. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2504026" target="_blank">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2504026</a> <a href="#fnref:23" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:24"><p>Safrole: Human Health Effects. Toxnet: Toxicology Data Network. https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+2653 Archived 2017-10-29 at the Wayback Machine <a href="https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+2653" target="_blank">https://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/sis/search/a?dbs+hsdb:@term+@DOCNO+2653</a> <a href="#fnref:24" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:25"><p>Small, Ernest (September 23, 2013). North American Cornucopia: Top 100 Indigenous Food Plants. CRC Press. pp. 603–606. ISBN 978-1-4665-8592-8. <a href="978-1-4665-8592-8" target="_blank">978-1-4665-8592-8</a> <a href="#fnref:25" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:26"><p>Nobles, Cynthia Lejeune (2009), "Gumbo", in Tucker, Susan; Starr, S. Frederick (eds.), New Orleans Cuisine: Fourteen Signature Dishes and Their Histories, University Press of Mississippi, p. 110, ISBN 978-1-60473-127-9 <a href="978-1-60473-127-9" target="_blank">978-1-60473-127-9</a> <a href="#fnref:26" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:27"><p>Dietz, B; Bolton, Jl (Apr 2007). "Botanical dietary supplements gone bad". Chemical Research in Toxicology. 20 (4): 586–90. doi:10.1021/tx7000527. ISSN 0893-228X. PMC 2504026. PMID 17362034. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2504026" target="_blank">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2504026</a> <a href="#fnref:27" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:28"><p>Safrole: Human Health Effects. 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