Artemisia absinthium

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Artemisia absinthium
Artemisia absinthium P1210748.jpg
Absinthe Museum garden, Auvers-sur-Oise, France
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Artemisia
Species:
A. absinthium
Binomial name
Artemisia absinthium
Synonyms [2] [3]
List
  • Absinthium bipedaleGilib., not validly published
  • Absinthium majusGeoffr. [2]
  • Absinthium majusGarsault, not validly published
  • Absinthium officinaleLam. [2]
  • Absinthium officinaleBrot.
  • Absinthium vulgare(L.) Lam.
  • Artemisia absinthiaSt.-Lag.
  • Artemisia arborescens var. cupanianaChiov.
  • Artemisia arborescens f. rehan(Chiov.) Chiov.
  • Artemisia baldacciiDegen
  • Artemisia doonenseRoyle
  • Artemisia inodoraMill.
  • Artemisia kulbadicaBoiss. & Buhse
  • Artemisia pendulaSalisb.
  • Artemisia rehanChiov.
  • Artemisia rhaeticaBrügger

Artemisia absinthium, otherwise known as common wormwood, is a species of Artemisia native to North Africa and temperate regions of Eurasia, [4] and widely naturalized in Canada and the northern United States. [5] It is grown as an ornamental plant and is used as an ingredient in the spirit absinthe and some other alcoholic beverages.

Contents

Etymology

Wormwood's relative mugwort was traditionally used as a remedy for a variety of complaints, especially those of a gynaecological nature, and so the wormwood genus bears the name of the Greek goddess of childbirth, Artemis. [6] The specific name derives from apsínthion, the Greek term for the plant. [7]

"Wormwood" itself is an alteration of Old English wermod, which is of obscure origin. [8] The German cognate Wermut is the source of the term vermouth, used in French and English to describe a kind of wine traditionally flavoured with wormwood. [9]

Description

A. absinthium is a herbaceous perennial plant with fibrous roots. The stems are straight, growing to 0.8–1.2 m (2 ft 7 in – 3 ft 11 in) (and rarely over 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in)) tall, grooved, branched, and silvery-green.

Leaves are spirally arranged, greenish-grey colored above, white below, covered with silky silvery-white trichomes, and bearing minute oil-producing glands. The basal leaves are up to 250 mm (10 in) long, bi- to tripinnate with long petioles, with the cauline leaves (those on the stem) smaller, 50–100 mm (2–4 in) long, less divided, and with short petioles. The uppermost leaves can be both simple and sessile (without a petiole).

Flowers are pale yellow, tubular, and clustered in spherical bent-down heads (capitula), which are in turn clustered in leafy and branched panicles. Flowering occurs from early summer to early autumn; pollination is anemophilous. The fruit is a small achene. Seed dispersal occurs by gravity. [5]

A. absinthium grows naturally on uncultivated arid ground, on rocky slopes, and at the edge of footpaths and fields. Although once relatively common, it is becoming increasingly rare in Britain, where it has recently been suggested to be an archaeophyte rather than a true native. [10]

Cultivation

A. absinthium inflorescences Artemisia absinthium 0002.JPG
A. absinthium inflorescences

The plant can easily be cultivated in dry soil. It should be planted under bright exposure in fertile, midweight soil. It prefers soil rich in nitrogen, and can be propagated by ripened cuttings taken in spring or autumn in temperate climates, or by seeds in nursery beds. Growing the plant with others tends to stunt their growth; accordingly, it is not considered to be a good companion plant. A. absinthium also self-seeds generously. It is naturalised in some areas away from its native range, including much of North America and Kashmir Valley of India. [11]

This plant, [12] and its cultivars "Lambrook Mist" [12] and "Lambrook Silver" [13] have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. These two short cultivars are very similar and more silver than typical British absinthium material and probably derive from southern Europe. "Lambrook Silver" is the earliest of these cultivars, having been selected in the late 1950s by Margery Fish, who developed the garden at East Lambrook Manor. "Lambrook Mist" was selected about 30 years later by Andrew Norton, a subsequent owner of the garden. Both gained their Awards of Garden Merit during the RHS Artemisia Trial 1991–3.

Cultivar "Silver Ghost" is a taller, silver plant, which flowers much later (August–September) than typical absinthium (June–July) in Britain, so holds its silver appearance for longer. This and a more feathery-leaved cultivar "Persian Lace" were selected by National Collection Holder John Twibell in the 1990s. [14]

Constituents

Wormwood herb contains bitter substances from the group of sesquiterpene lactones; absinthin, at 0.20 to 0.28%, is the main component of these bitter substances. Essential oils make up 0.2 to 0.8% and contain (-) - thujone, (+) - isothujone, thujyl alcohol and its esters, chamazulene and other mono- and sesquiterpenes. [15] [16] In Bailen et al 2013 and Gonzalez-Coloma et al 2013 the Gonzalez-Coloma group discovered a chemotype that does not produce β-thujone but does contain terpenoids not seen elsewhere. [17]

Uses

Artemisia absinthium is claimed to have antifungal, neuroprotective, insecticidal, antimicrobial, anthelmintic, acaricidal, antimalarial, antidepressant, and hepatoprotective properties. [18]

It is an ingredient in the spirit absinthe, and is used for flavouring in some other spirits and wines, including bitters, bäsk, vermouth, and pelinkovac. As medicine, it is used for dyspepsia, as a bitter to counteract poor appetite, for various infectious diseases, Crohn's disease, and IgA nephropathy. [19] [20] [21] [22]

In the Middle Ages, wormwood was used to spice mead, [23] and in Morocco, where it is called shība (الشيبة), it is used as a complement or substitute for mint in Moroccan tea. [24]

Wormwood was traditionally relatively common as a bittering spice in farmhouse brewing in Denmark, and to some extent Estonia. [25] In 18th-century England, wormwood was sometimes used instead of hops in beer. [26]

Wormwood clippings and cuttings are added to chicken nesting boxes to repel lice, mites, and fleas. [27] Bailen et al. 2013 and Gonzalez-Coloma et al. 2013 find the unique terpenoids of the Gonzalez-Coloma chemotype make this strain especially promising for insect control. [17] As of 2020 a company named EcoflorAgro is investing heavily into increasing the planted area of this strain, hoping to commercialize it to a degree attempted – but never achieved due to unreliable supply – for other botanical insecticides before. [17]

Toxicity

Most chemotypes of A. absinthium contain (−)-α- and/or (+)-β-thujone, [28] though some do not. [29] (−)-α-Thujone by itself is a GABAA receptor antagonist that can cause convulsions and death when administered in large amounts to animals and humans. [30] However, there is only one case of documented toxicity of wormwood involving a 31-year-old man who drank 10 mL of steam-distilled volatile oil of wormwood, wrongly believing it was absinthe liqueur. [31] Medicinal extracts of wormwood have not been shown to cause seizure or other adverse effects at usual doses. [32] Thujones have not been shown to be the cause of excessive doses' toxicity for any kind of wormwood extracts, including absinthe. [33]

Cultural history

Nicholas Culpeper insisted that wormwood was the key to understanding his 1651 book The English Physitian. Richard Mabey describes Culpeper's entry on this bitter-tasting plant as "stream-of-consciousness" and "unlike anything else in the herbal", and states that it reads "like the ramblings of a drunk". Culpeper biographer Benjamin Woolley suggests the piece may be an allegory about bitterness, as Culpeper had spent his life fighting the Establishment, and had been imprisoned and seriously wounded in battle as a result. [34]

William Shakespeare referred to wormwood in Romeo and Juliet: Act 1, Scene 3. Juliet's childhood nurse said, "For I had then laid wormwood to my dug" meaning that the nurse had weaned Juliet, then aged three, by using the bitter taste of wormwood on her nipple. He also referred to wormwood in Hamlet: Act 3, Scene 2. Hamlet said, "That's wormwood" in response to the Player Queen expressing distaste for remarriage.

John Locke, in his 1689 book titled An Essay Concerning Human Understanding , used wormwood as an example of bitterness, writing, "For a child knows as certainly before it can speak the difference between the ideas of sweet and bitter (i.e. that sweet is not bitter), as it knows afterwards (when it comes to speak) that wormwood and sugarplums are not the same thing." [35]

Edwin Arlington Robinson relates in a poem how Cliff Klingenhagen gave a guest a glass of wine while drinking a glass of wormwood himself. He concludes, "I have spent / Long time a-wondering when I shall be / As happy as Cliff Klingenhagen is."

In the biblical book of prophesy, the Book of Revelation, the star which falls to earth and turns a thirds of the waters of the earth bitter is named Wormwood. Similarly where the Biblical Hebrew word לענה (la'anah) appears in the Hebrew Bible it is generally translated into English as "wormwood". [36]

Related Research Articles

Wormwood may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thujone</span> Group of four possible stereoisomers found in various plants: a.o., absinthe and mint

Thujone is a ketone and a monoterpene that occurs predominantly in two diastereomeric (epimeric) forms: (−)-α-thujone and (+)-β-thujone.

<i>Artemisia</i> (plant) Genus of flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae

Artemisia is a large, diverse genus of plants belonging to the daisy family Asteraceae, with between 200 and 400 species. Common names for various species in the genus include mugwort, wormwood, and sagebrush.

<i>Artemisia vulgaris</i> Medicinal herb known as common mugwort

Artemisia vulgaris, the common mugwort, is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. It is one of several species in the genus Artemisia commonly known as mugwort, although Artemisia vulgaris is the species most often called mugwort. It is also occasionally known as riverside wormwood, felon herb, chrysanthemum weed, wild wormwood, old Uncle Henry, sailor's tobacco, naughty man, old man, or St. John's plant. Mugworts have been used medicinally and as culinary herbs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tansy</span> Species of plant

Tansy is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant in the genus Tanacetum in the aster family, native to temperate Europe and Asia. It has been introduced to other parts of the world, including North America, and in some areas has become invasive. It is also known as common tansy, bitter buttons, cow bitter, or golden buttons. The Latin word vulgare means "common".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Absente</span>

Absente is a brand name of 110 proof anise liqueur that has been marketed under the tagline "Absinthe Refined" since c. 2000. "Absente" is a French word that translates as "absent" in English.

<i>Artemisia maritima</i> Species of flowering plant

Artemisia maritima is a European species of wormwood known as sea wormwood and old woman. It is a deciduous wind pollinated shrub growing to 0.6 m (2 ft) which flowers from August to September. It is the caterpillar foodplant of Eupithecia extensaria. It is native to France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Bulgaria and Russia.

<i>Artemisia abrotanum</i> Species of flowering plant

Artemisia abrotanum, the southernwood, lad's love, or southern wormwood, is a species of flowering plant in the sunflower family. It is native to Eurasia and Africa but naturalized in scattered locations in North America. Other common names include: old man, boy's love, oldman wormwood, lover's plant, appleringie, garderobe, Our Lord's wood, maid's ruin, garden sagebrush, European sage, sitherwood and lemon plant.

<i>Tanacetum balsamita</i> Species of herb

Tanacetum balsamita is a perennial temperate herb known as costmary, alecost, balsam herb, bible leaf, or mint geranium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mugwort</span> Genus of flowering plants used as herbs

Mugwort is a common name for several species of aromatic flowering plants in the genus Artemisia. In Europe, mugwort most often refers to the species Artemisia vulgaris, or common mugwort. In East Asia the species Artemisia argyi is often called "Chinese mugwort" in the context of traditional Chinese medicine, Ngai Chou in Cantonese or àicǎo (艾草) in Mandarin. Artemisia princeps is a mugwort known in Korea as ssuk (쑥) and in Japan as yomogi (ヨモギ). While other species are sometimes referred to by more specific common names, they may be called simply "mugwort" in many contexts.

<i>Artemisia afra</i> Species of flowering plant

Artemisia afra, the African wormwood,[4] is a common species of the genus Artemisia in Africa, with a wide distribution from South Africa, to areas reaching to the North and East, as far north as Ethiopia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Absinthe</span> Alcoholic drink

Absinthe is an anise-flavored spirit derived from several plants, including the flowers and leaves of Artemisia absinthium, together with green anise, sweet fennel, and other medicinal and culinary herbs. Historically described as a highly alcoholic spirit, it is 45–74% ABV or 90–148 proof in the US. Absinthe traditionally has a natural green color but may also be colorless. It is commonly referred to in historical literature as la fée verte. While sometimes casually referred to as a liqueur, absinthe is not traditionally bottled with sugar or sweeteners. Absinthe is traditionally bottled at a high level of alcohol by volume, but it is normally diluted with water before being consumed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucid Absinthe</span> French absinthe

Lucid Absinthe Supérieure is the first absinthe made with Grande Wormwood to be legally available in the United States after the repeal of the 95-year ban.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Le Tourment Vert</span> French liqueur similar to absinthe, created in 2007

Le Tourment Vert was an absinthe-like liqueur imported from the French Distillerie Vinet EGE, near the French commune of Cognac. The spirit was created in 2007.

<i>Hyssopus officinalis</i> Species of plant

Hyssopus officinalis or hyssop is a shrub in the Lamiaceae or mint family native to Southern Europe, the Middle East, and the region surrounding the Caspian Sea. Due to its purported properties as an antiseptic, cough reliever, and expectorant, it has been used in traditional herbal medicine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Absinthin</span> Chemical compound

Absinthin is a naturally produced triterpene lactone from the plant Artemisia absinthium (Wormwood). It constitutes one of the most bitter chemical agents responsible for absinthe's distinct taste. The compound shows biological activity and has shown promise as an anti-inflammatory agent, and should not be confused with thujone, a neurotoxin also found in Artemisia absinthium.

<i>Artemisia herba-alba</i> Species of plant

Artemisia herba-alba, the white wormwood, is a perennial shrub in the genus Artemisia that grows commonly on the dry steppes of the Mediterranean regions in Northern Africa, Western Asia and Southwestern Europe. It is used as an antiseptic and antispasmodic in herbal medicine.

<i>Artemisia argyi</i> Species of mugwort daisy

Artemisia argyi, commonly known as silvery wormwood or Chinese mugwort, is a herbaceous perennial plant with a creeping rhizome. It is native to China, Korea, Mongolia, Japan, and the Russian Far East. It is known in Chinese as àicǎo or ài yè or ài hao, in Japanese as Chōsen yomogi and in Korean as Hwanghae ssuk. It is used in herbal medicine for conditions of the liver, spleen and kidney.

<i>Artemisia arborescens</i> Species of flowering plant

Artemisia arborescens, the tree wormwood, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native to the Mediterranean region. It is an erect evergreen perennial, with masses of finely-divided aromatic silvery-white leaves and single-sided sprays of yellow daisy-like flowers. This plant is cultivated for its foliage effects, but in colder temperate regions it requires the protection of a wall.

<i>Artemisia pontica</i> Species of flowering plant

Artemisia pontica, the Roman wormwood or small absinthe, is an herb used in the production of absinthe and vermouth. Originating in southeastern Europe, it is naturalized over much of Eurasia from France to Xinjiang, and is also found in the wild in northeastern North America.

References

  1. ↑ Linnaeus, Carolus (1753). Species plantarum:exhibentes plantas rite cognitas, ad genera relatas, cum differentiis specificis, nominibus trivialibus, synonymis selectis, locis natalibus, secundum systema sexuale digestas... Vol. 2. Holmiae (Laurentii Salvii). p. 848. Archived from the original on 4 October 2008. Retrieved 8 September 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 Christian Rätsch (2005). The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: Ethnopharmacology and Its Applications. Inner Traditions/Bear. p. 69. ISBN   978-0-89281-978-2.
  3. ↑ "Artemisia absinthium L. — The Plant List". www.theplantlist.org.
  4. ↑ "Artemisia absinthium[Assenzio vero] - Flora Italiana". luirig.altervista.org.
  5. 1 2 "Artemisia absinthium in Flora of North America @ efloras.org". www.efloras.org.
  6. ↑ "artemisia" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  7. ↑ "absinthium" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  8. ↑ Harper, Douglas. "wormwood". Online Etymology Dictionary . Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  9. ↑ Harper, Douglas. "vermouth". Online Etymology Dictionary . Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  10. ↑ Archeophytes in Britain CD Preston, DA Pearman and A R Hall Botanical J of Linnean Society 2004 145 257-294
  11. ↑ Shafi et al., 2012
  12. 1 2 "Artemisia absinthium 'Lambrook Mist' AGM". APPS.RHS.org.uk. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  13. ↑ "Artemisia absinthium 'Lambrook Silver' AGM". APPS.RHS.org.uk. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  14. ↑ John Twibell, National Collection of Artemisia
  15. ↑ Wichtl, Max, ed. (1984). Teedrogen. Ein Handbuch für Apotheker und Ärzte. Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart, ISBN   3-8047-0792-0, pp. 363–365
  16. ↑ European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC) (30 May 2017). Assessment report on Artemisia absinthium L., herba, final, London, p. 4
  17. 1 2 3 Isman, Murray B. (7 January 2020). "Botanical Insecticides in the Twenty-First Century—Fulfilling Their Promise?". Annual Review of Entomology . 65 (1). Annual Reviews: 233–249. doi:10.1146/annurev-ento-011019-025010. ISSN   0066-4170. PMID   31594414. S2CID   203985529.
  18. ↑ Batiha GE-S, Olatunde A, El-Mleeh A, Hetta HF, Al-Rejaie S, Alghamdi S, Zahoor M, Magdy Beshbishy A, Murata T, Zaragoza-Bastida A, Rivero-Perez N. Bioactive Compounds, Pharmacological Actions, and Pharmacokinetics of Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium). Antibiotics. 2020; 9(6):353. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics9060353
  19. ↑ European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy (2009) "Absinthii herba (wormwood)" In: ESCOP Monographs: The Scientific Foundation for Herbal Medicinal Products, 2nd ed, Thieme.
  20. ↑ Abad MJ, Bedoya LM, Apaza L, Bermejo P (2012). "The Artemisia L genus: A review of bioactive essential oils" . Molecules 17: 2542-2566. PMID   22388966. doi : 10.3390/molecules17032542.
  21. ↑ Algieri F, Rodriguez-Nogales A, Rodriguez-Cabezas ME, et al. (2015). "Botanical drugs as an emerging strategy in inflammatory bowel disease: a review" . Mediators Inflamm. 2015: 179616. PMID   26576073.PMC   4630406. doi : 10.1155/2015/179616.
  22. ↑ Krebs S, Omer B, Omer TN, Fliser D (2010). "Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) for poorly responsive early-stage IgA nephropathy: a pilot uncontrolled trial" Am. J. Kidney Dis. 56 (6): 1095-9. PMID   20843592. doi : 10.1053/j.ajkd.2010.06.025.
  23. ↑ Grieves, M. (1931). "Wormwood, Common". Botanical.com. Archived from the original on 28 May 2010. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  24. ↑ Artemisia: An Essential Guide from The Herb Society of America (PDF), The Herb Society of America, 2013, p. 14, archived from the original (PDF) on 5 September 2015
  25. ↑ Garshol, Lars Marius (2020). Historical Brewing Techniques: The Lost Art of Farmhouse Brewing. Brewers Publications. p. 220. ISBN   9781938469558.
  26. ↑ Hartley, Dorothy (1985) [1954]. Food in England. Futura Publications. p. 456. ISBN   0-7088-2696-2.
  27. ↑ "Gardening Australia Series 29 Episode 09". ABC Australia. 23 March 2018. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  28. ↑ Nguyen HT, Németh ZÉ (2016). "Sources of variability of wormwood (Artemisia absinthium L) essential oil". J. Appl. Res. Med. Aromatic Plants. 3 (4): 143–150. doi:10.1016/j.jarmap.2016.07.005.
  29. ↑ Ariño A, Arberas I, Renobales G, Arriaga S, Dominguez JB (1999). "Essential oil of Artemisia absinthium L from the Spanish Pyrenees". J. Essential Oil Res. 11 (2): 182–184. doi:10.1080/10412905.1999.9701105.
  30. ↑ Olsen RW (April 2000). "Absinthe and gamma-aminobutyric acid receptors". Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 97 (9): 4417–4418. Bibcode:2000PNAS...97.4417O. doi: 10.1073/pnas.97.9.4417 . PMC   34311 . PMID   10781032.
  31. ↑ Weisbord SD, Soule JB, Kimmel PL (1997). "Poison on line – acute renal failure caused by oil of wormwood purchased through the internet". N. Engl. J. Med. 337 (12): 825–827. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199709183371205 . PMID   9297113.
  32. ↑ Yarnell E, Heron S (2000). "Retrospective analysis of the safety of bitter herbs with an emphasis on Artemisia absinthium L (wormwood)". J. Naturopathic Med. 9: 32–39.
  33. ↑ Lachenmeier DW, Nathan-Maister D (2007). "Systematic misinformation about thujone in pre-ban absinthe". Deutsche Lebensmittel-Rundschau. 103 (6): 255–263.
  34. ↑ Richard Mabey (2010). Weeds. The Story of Outlaw Plants. Profile Books Ltd. pp. 102–103. ISBN   978-1-84668-081-6.
  35. ↑ An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, Volume 1 MDCXC, Based on the 2nd Edition, Books 1 and 2.
  36. ↑ Musselman, Lytton John (12 April 2007). "Wormwood". Plant Site: Bible Plants. Old Dominion University. Archived from the original on 29 April 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
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