Artemisia vulgaris

Artemisia vulgaris L.

from the Vienna Dioscorides
Order	Asterales
Family	Compositae
Genus	Artemisia

2n = 16, 18

Origin : Eurasia

wild, rarely cultivated


English	{{{english}}}
French	{{{french}}}

Popular names

English: mugwort
French: armoise
German: Beifuß
Dutch: bijvoet
Spanish: artemisa
Portuguese: artemigem
Italian: artemisia, assenzio selvatico
Chinese: yě ài
Japanese: yomogi

See French names in Eugène Rolland

Biology

Classification

Artemisia vulgaris L. (1753)

In East and South Asia, it is present as var. indica (Willd.) Maxim. (1872).

Cultivars

History

Several species have been named artemisia by Greeks and later Romans. As the goddess Artemis to whom it is dedicated, mugwort has the mandate to cure women's illnesses. In the Middle-Ages, it came to be known as the mother of all herbs, mater herbarum, and Macer Floridus (9th century) details its virtues. It was also a magical herb, and one of Saint-John's herbs, that were worn to protect oneself against spells, or that were placed in houses to keep away bad evils. Crowns or belts of mugwort were thrown into Saint-John's fires.

See also [[Artemisia (Sturtevant, 1919)|Sturtevant (1919)]

Uses

Condiment. Much used as a culinary herb in the Middle-Ages. Today rarely used, in Germany for roasts, grilled eel, sauces or lard. In Japan, it is used as a vegetable and to flavour rice.
Medicinal. See Cazin 1868.