Matricaria chamomilla | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Asterales |
Family: | Asteraceae |
Genus: | Matricaria |
Species: | M. chamomilla |
Binomial name | |
Matricaria chamomilla | |
Synonyms [1] | |
Chamomilla chamomilla(L.) Rydb. Contents |
Matricaria chamomilla (synonym: Matricaria recutita), commonly known as chamomile (also spelled camomile), German chamomile, [2] Hungarian chamomile (kamilla), wild chamomile, blue chamomile, or scented mayweed, [3] [4] is an annual plant of the composite family Asteraceae. Commonly, the name M. recutita is applied to the herbal product chamomile, although other species are also used as chamomile. [2] The plant is commonly used to make a tea.
Matricaria chamomilla is a member of the Asteraceae family, native to southern and eastern Europe. It can be found on all continents, has a branched, erect and smooth stem, and grows to a height of 15–60 cm (6–24 in). [5] The long and narrow leaves are bipinnate or tripinnate. The flowers are borne in paniculate flower heads (capitula). The white ray florets are furnished with a ligule, while the disc florets are yellow. The hollow receptacle is swollen and lacks scales. This property distinguishes German chamomile from corn chamomile (Anthemis arvensis), which has a receptacle with scales. The flowers bloom in early to midsummer and are fragrant. [5]
The essential oil of the flowers gives them a characteristic smell and has interesting properties. The blue color of the oil, attributable to the chamazulene it contains, explains why the plant is also known by the common name blue chamomile. The fruit is a yellowish-brown achene. [5]
The word chamomile comes from the Greek χαμαίμηλον (chamaimēlon) meaning "earth-apple", [6] which is derived from χαμαί (chamai) meaning "on the ground" [7] and μήλον (mēlon) meaning "apple". [8] It is so called because of the apple-like scent of the plant.
In Latin, one of the meanings of matrix is womb; the name Matricaria was given to the genus because Matricaria chamomilla was used in ancient herbalism to treat cramps and sleep disorders related to premenstrual syndrome.[ citation needed ]
Chamomile is commonly used to make a tea. [2] German chamomile is used in herbal medicine. [2] [9]
The flowers contain between 0.3 and 1.5% of the essential oil. [10] It is extracted by distillation, mostly out of fresh flower buds and flower stalks. Bisabolol accounts for up to 33% of the oil's content. [11]
More than 120 chemical constituents have been identified in chamomile flower, most of them found in the essential oil. [5] [12] Chemical constituents of the essential oil include bisabolol, farnesene, chamazulene, apigenin, quercetin, patuletin, luteolin, and coumarin. [13]
Chamomile, a relative of ragweed, can cause allergy symptoms and can cross-react with ragweed pollen in individuals with ragweed allergies. [2] [9] Contact dermatitis may occur when touching the plant. [2] When consuming the tea, there is potential for drug interactions with anticoagulants. [2]
Chamomile does not need special soil, although it grows best on well balanced soils with good topsoil. [10] It can be planted as an annual crop in either autumn or spring, or it can be treated as a perennial due to its ability to self-seed. [11] [14]
Aphids are a major insect pest in chamomile production. Its most significant diseases in Europe are downy mildew, powdery mildew and rust. [10]
The chamomile plant often flowers 2 to 3 times per year. [10] This is taken into account by multiple harvests per year as well. The flowering period is about 50–65 days while the development of a flower takes about 20–25 days. [11]
Asteraceae is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger family is unclear as the quantity of extant species in each family is unknown. The Asteraceae were first described in the year 1740 and given the original name Compositae. The family is commonly known as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family.
Parsley, or garden parsley is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae that is native to Greece, Morocco and the former Yugoslavia. It has been introduced and naturalized in Europe and elsewhere in the world with suitable climates, and is widely cultivated as a herb, and a vegetable.
Hydrangea, commonly named the hortensia, is a genus of more than 70 species of flowering plants native to Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Korea, and Japan. Most are shrubs 1–3 m tall, but some are small trees, and others lianas reaching up to 30 m (100 ft) by climbing up trees. They can be either deciduous or evergreen, though the widely cultivated temperate species are all deciduous.
Chamomile or camomile is the common name for several daisy-like plants of the family Asteraceae. Two of the species, Matricaria chamomilla and Chamaemelum nobile, are commonly used to make herbal infusions for beverages. There has been limited research as to whether consuming chamomile in foods or beverages is effective in treating medical conditions.
Matricaria discoidea, commonly known as pineappleweed, wild chamomile, disc mayweed, and rayless mayweed, is an annual plant native to North America and introduced to Eurasia where it grows as a common herb of fields, gardens, and roadsides. It is in the daisy family Asteraceae. The flowers exude a chamomile/pineapple aroma when crushed. They are edible and have been used in salads and to make herbal tea.
Ajwain or ajowan —also known as ajowan caraway, omam , thymol seeds, bishop's weed, or carom—is an annual herb in the family Apiaceae. Both the leaves and the seed‑like fruit of the plant are consumed by humans. The name "bishop's weed" also is a common name for other plants. The "seed" is often confused with lovage seed.
Vitex agnus-castus is a plant native of the Mediterranean region. It is one of the few temperate-zone species of Vitex, which is on the whole a genus of tropical and subtropical flowering plants. Vitex is a cross-pollinating plant, but its self-pollination has been recorded.
Matricaria is a genus of flowering plants in the chamomile tribe within the sunflower family. Some of the species have the common name of "mayweed", but this name also refers to plants not in this genus.
Tanacetum parthenium, known as feverfew, is a flowering plant in the daisy family, Asteraceae. It may be grown as an ornament, and may be identified by its synonyms, Chrysanthemum parthenium and Pyrethrum parthenium. It is also used as a herbal medicine in the traditional sense and a dietary supplement to treat headache and other ailments, as well more recently in topical skin care as an antioxidant.
Tripleurospermum inodorum, common names scentless false mayweed, scentless mayweed, scentless chamomile, and Baldr's brow, is the type species of Tripleurospermum. This plant is native to Eurasia and North Africa, and introduced to North America, where it is commonly found in fields, fallow land and gardens.
Acanthus is a genus of about 30 species of flowering plants in the family Acanthaceae, native to tropical and warm temperate regions, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean Basin and Asia. This flowering plant is nectar producing and depends on butterflies, such as Anartia fatima, and other nectar feeding organisms to distribute its pollen. Common names include Acanthus and bear's breeches. The generic name derives from the Greek term ἄκανθος (akanthos) for Acanthus mollis, a plant that was commonly imitated in Corinthian capitals.
Bisabolol, or more formally α-(−)-bisabolol or also known as levomenol, is a natural monocyclic sesquiterpene alcohol. It is a colorless viscous oil that is the primary constituent of the essential oil from German chamomile and Myoporum crassifolium. High concentrations of bisabolol can also be found in certain medicinal cannabis cultivars. It is poorly soluble in water and glycerine, but soluble in ethanol. The enantiomer, α-(+)-bisabolol, is also found naturally but is rare. Synthetic bisabolol is usually a racemic mixture of the two, α-(±)-bisabolol. It is the terpenoid responsible for distinctive aroma of chamomile flowers, and when isolated, its scent has also has been likened to apples, sugar and honey.
Infusion is the process of extracting chemical compounds or flavors from plant material in a solvent such as water, oil or alcohol, by allowing the material to remain suspended in the solvent over time. An infusion is also the name for the resultant liquid. The process of infusion is distinct from both decoction—a method of extraction involving boiling the plant material—and percolation, in which water is passed through the material.
Anthemis cotula, also known as stinking chamomile, or mayweed, is a flowering annual plant with a noticeable and strong odor. The odor is often considered unpleasant, and it is from this that it gains the common epithet "stinking". In pre-colonial times, its distribution was limited to the Old Continent and Africa; though it was established in most of Europe, it was not present in Finland, Ireland, or the northernmost reaches of Scotland, in spite of the fact that these countries feature climatic regions favorable to this plant and are in proximity to countries where the species is native, such as Russia, Estonia, Lithuania and England. It has successfully migrated to the American continents where it can be found growing in meadows, alongside roads, and in fields.
Chamaedaphne calyculata, known commonly as leatherleaf or cassandra, is a perennial dwarf shrub in the plant family Ericaceae and the only species in the genus Chamaedaphne. It is commonly seen in cold, acidic bogs and forms large, spreading colonies.
Chamaemelum nobile, commonly known as chamomile, is a low perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds in Europe, North America, and South America. Its synonym is Anthemis nobilis, with various common names, such as Roman chamomile, English chamomile, garden chamomile, ground apple, low chamomile, mother's daisy or whig plant. C. nobile is one source of the herbal product known as chamomile using dried flowers for flavoring teas or as a fragrance used in aromatherapy. Chamomile has no established medicinal properties.
Warionia is a genus in the tribe Cichorieae within the family Asteraceae. The only known species is Warionia saharae, an endemic of Algeria and Morocco, and it is locally known in the Berber language as afessas, abessas or tazart n-îfiss. It is an aromatic, thistle-like shrub of ½–2 m high, that contains a white latex, and has fleshy, pinnately divided, wavy leaves. It is not thorny or prickly. The aggregate flower heads contain yellow disk florets. It flowers from April till June. Because Warionia is deviant in many respects from any other Asteraceae, different scholars have placed it hesitantly in the Cardueae, Gundelieae, Mutisieae, but now genetic analysis positions it as the sister group to all other Cichorieae.
Pallenis spinosa, commonly known as spiny starwort or spiny golden star, is an annual herbaceous plant belonging to the genus Pallenis of the family Asteraceae. The Latin name of the genus is derived from palea (chaff), referring to the chaffy receptacle, while the species name spinosa, meaning spiny, refers to the spiny bracts surrounding the flowers.
Onocosiphon suffruticosus, commonly known as the shrubby mayweed, is a flowering plant native to Namibia and the Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces of South Africa. Additionally, it can now be found in France, Australia, and the USA.
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