Artemisia afra

Last updated

Artemisia afra
Artemisia afra 07102003 Afrique du sud 3.jpg
African wormwood
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. afra
Binomial name
Artemisia afra
Synonyms [1]
  • Absinthium ponticum(L.) Garsault
  • Absinthium tenuifoliumGaterau
  • Artemisia altaicaDesf.
  • Artemisia balsamitaWilld.
  • Artemisia grandifloraFisch. ex Herder
  • Artemisia pallidaSalisb.
  • Artemisia ponticaBurm.f.
  • Artemisia pseudoponticaSchur
  • Artemisia tenuifoliaMoench

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. [2]

Contents

Description

Artemisia afra grows in clumps, with ridged, woody stems, reaching from 0.5 meters to 2 meters in height. The leaves are dark green, of soft texture, and similar in shape to fern leaves. The undersides of the leaves are a lighter green, and are covered with white bristles. Smaller side branches shoot up from the main stem. Artemisia afra blossoms in late summer, producing abundant bracts of butter-colored flowers, each approximately 3 to 5 millimeters in diameter. Artemisia afra exudes a pungent, sweet smell when any part of the plant is bruised. [3]

Distribution and Habitat

Artemisia afra grows across a wide geographic area, including Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe and Namibia. It grows primarily in areas that are damp, such as by the side of streams, and also in transitional areas between ecosystems. It grows at the elevations of between 20 and 2440. It can be found on slopes, stream-sides, and forest margins. [3] It is most commonly found in the months of March, April and May. 88.4% of the time it was found it was preserved. 48.0% of the time it was found, it was found in South Africa, 14.4% it was found in Tanzania, and 9.6% of the time it was found in Kenya. [4]

It is considered an invasive species, encroaching and spreading pretty fast in the nature park the study took place in. It was found in around 15% of the reserve. 71% of the plants were adults and 29% were juveniles. [5]

Uses

It has been used for many things. It has been used as a blood purifier, used to make bitter tea, and to treat every disease under the sun. People would put fresh leaves into nostrils to clear blocked nasal passages. Hot leaves were bound over sprains. It has been grounded into a powder to deter ants. Moths, incests, and fleas probably don't like it too, as it has been used as a repellent. [6] It has been used to treat malaria, which lacks scientific evidence and the study found no interesting compounds, including artemisinin, which is used to treat malaria. [7] The leaves have been in socks to help treat sweaty feet. [8]

It has been used as an infusion, a quarter cup of fresh A. afra leaves are put in a cup of boiling water and the infusion is allowed to cool for 10 minutes. After that, it is strained and mixed with honey. A sesquiterpene lactone from afra had cytotoxicity. It has a lot of genetic variation, especially when it comes to chemical variation. [9]

Essential oil

Essential oil extracts of Artemisia afra are prepared by steam distillation using twigs and blossoms. Extracts contain the following components (via gas chromatography) which are typical of extracts of the genus Artemisia: [10]

Other names

Aretemisia afra is known by a variety of names, primarily due to the number of native dialects in regions where it grows. Langana represents a Sotho-derived name for Artemisia afra. Other variants include:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tarragon</span> Species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae

Tarragon, also known as estragon, is a species of perennial herb in the family Asteraceae. It is widespread in the wild across much of Eurasia and North America and is cultivated for culinary and medicinal purposes.

<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.

<i>Artemisia annua</i> Herb known as sweet wormwood used to treat malaria

Artemisia annua, also known as sweet wormwood, sweet annie, sweet sagewort, annual mugwort or annual wormwood, is a common type of wormwood native to temperate Asia, but naturalized in many countries including scattered parts of North America.

<i>Coleus amboinicus</i> Species of plant

Coleus amboinicus, synonym Plectranthus amboinicus, is a semi-succulent perennial plant in the family Lamiaceae with a pungent oregano-like flavor and odor. Coleus amboinicus is considered to be native to parts of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and India, although it is widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere in the tropics where it is used as a spice and ornamental plant. Common names in English include Indian borage, country borage, French thyme, Indian mint, Mexican mint, Cuban oregano, soup mint, Spanish thyme. The species epithet, amboinicus refers to Ambon Island, in Indonesia, where it was apparently encountered and described by João de Loureiro (1717–1791).

<i>Angelica archangelica</i> Species of plant

Angelica archangelica, commonly known as angelica, garden angelica, wild celery, and Norwegian angelica, is a biennial plant from the family Apiaceae, a subspecies of which is cultivated for its sweetly scented edible stems and roots. Like several other species in Apiaceae, its appearance is similar to several poisonous species, and should not be consumed unless it has been identified with absolute certainty. Synonyms include Archangelica officinalisHoffm. and Angelica officinalisMoench.

<i>Artemisia absinthium</i> Species of plant

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

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

Mugwort or biboz 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>Eriocephalus africanus</i> Species of flowering plant

Eriocephalus africanus is a bushy shrublet indigenous to South Africa. It has a wide distribution in the Western and Eastern Cape, and in Namaqualand. The plant has several common names in various languages. It is known as the Kapokbossie or Wild Rosemary referring to its fancied resemblance to rosemary. The superficial resemblance is in the foliage, which, though softer and not glossy, grows in a habit similar to that of the common Mediterranean rosemary, although the two species are not related.

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

Artemisia douglasiana, known as California mugwort, Douglas's sagewort, or dream plant, is a western North American species of aromatic herb in the sunflower family.

<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. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a liqueur, but is not traditionally bottled with added sugar, so is classified as a spirit. Absinthe is traditionally bottled at a high level of alcohol by volume, but it is normally diluted with water before being consumed.

<i>Monodora myristica</i> Species of tree

Monodora myristica, the calabash nutmeg or African nutmeg, is a tropical tree of the family Annonaceae or custard apple family of flowering plants. It is native to tropical Africa from Sierra Leone in the west to Tanzania. In former times, its seeds were widely sold as an inexpensive nutmeg substitute. This is now less common outside its region of production. Other names of calabash nutmeg include Jamaican nutmeg, ehuru, ariwo, awerewa, ehiri, airama, African orchid nutmeg, muscadier de Calabash and lubushi.

<i>Artemisia ludoviciana</i> Species of plant

Artemisia ludoviciana is a North American species of flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae, known by several common names, including silver wormwood, western mugwort, Louisiana wormwood, white sagebrush, lobed cud-weed, prairie sage, and gray sagewort.

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

Artemisia biennis is a species of sagebrush known by the common name biennial wormwood. It is a common and widely distributed weed, so well established in many places that its region of origin is difficult to ascertain. This species is most likely native to northwestern North America and naturalized in Western Europe, and eastern and southern North America.

<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>Portulacaria afra</i> Species of succulent in the family Didiereaceae

Portulacaria afra is a small-leaved succulent plant found in South Africa. These succulents commonly have a reddish stem and leaves that are green, but also a variegated cultivar is often seen in cultivation. They are simple to care for and make easy houseplants for a sunny location. In frost-free regions they may be used in outdoor landscaping.

<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.

Alpinia nigra is a medium-sized herb belonging to the ginger family. The rhizome is well known in many Asian cultures as a medicinal and culinary item. In many Asian tribal communities it is a part of the diet along with rice.

<i>Clausena anisata</i> Species of flowering plant

Clausena anisata (Willd.) Hook.f. ex Benth. is a deciduous shrub or small tree, belonging to the Rutaceae or Citrus family, and widespread in the Afrotropical realm or Sub-Saharan Africa, but absent from the drier regions. It is also found in tropical and South-East Asia, growing in India and Sri Lanka and extending as far as Queensland in north-eastern Australia and some Pacific islands. It is cultivated in Malaysia and Indonesia. As with other plants useful to mankind its large range of medicinal properties has led to a global distribution and its growth wherever the climate is suitable. It grows in higher-rainfall regions in savanna, thickets, riverine forest, disturbed areas and secondary forest, up to an altitude of 3000 m. The leaves, which are foetid when bruised, give rise to the common name 'Horsewood' or the more descriptive Afrikaans common name 'Perdepis', meaning 'horse urine'.

References

  1. The Plant List Artemisia afra Jacq. ex Willd.
  2. "Artemisia afra Jacq. ex Willd. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  3. 1 2 "Artemisia afra | PlantZAfrica". pza.sanbi.org. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  4. "Artemisia afra Jacq. ex Willd., 1803". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  5. Setshedi, Kgalalelo T. A.; Newete, Solomon W.; Witkowski, Ed T. F. (December 2022). "The threat of an indigenous medicinal plant encroacher: Artemisia afra in Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve, Johannesburg, South Africa". African Journal of Ecology. 60 (4): 1133–1142. doi:10.1111/aje.13057. ISSN   0141-6707.
  6. "WORMWOOD - AFRICAN, WILDEALS". www.herbgarden.co.za. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  7. du Toit, Anneke; van der Kooy, Frank (2019-11-15). "Artemisia afra, a controversial herbal remedy or a treasure trove of new drugs?". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 244: 112127. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2019.112127. ISSN   1872-7573. PMID   31376515.
  8. "Artemisia afra - Useful Tropical Plants". tropical.theferns.info. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  9. Liu, N. Q.; Van der Kooy, F.; Verpoorte, R. (2009-04-01). "Artemisia afra: A potential flagship for African medicinal plants?". South African Journal of Botany. 75 (2): 185–195. doi: 10.1016/j.sajb.2008.11.001 . ISSN   0254-6299.
  10. Natural, Essentially. "Oil Of The Week: African Wormwood". Essentially Natural. Retrieved 2023-07-08.
  1. Bremness, L. The complete book of herbs, Dorling Kindersley, London, 1988.
  2. Jackson, W. Origins and meanings of names of South African plant genera, Univ. Cape Town, 1990.
  3. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening, Huxley, A., et al., eds. Macmillan Press, London, 1992.
  4. Liu, N. Q., Van der Kooy, F., Verpoorte, R. Artemisia afra: A potential flagship for African medicinal plants?, 2009.
  5. Mangena, T., Muyima, N.Y.O. Comparative evaluation of the antimicrobial activities of essential oils of Artemisia afra, Pteronia incana and Rosmarinus officinalis on selected bacteria and yeast strains. 1999.
  6. Mukinda, J., & Syce, J. Acute and chronic toxicity of the aqueous extract of Artemisia afra in rodents. 2007.
  7. Thring, T.S.A., Weitz, F.M. Medicinal plant use in the Bredasdorp/Elim region of the Southern Overberg in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, 2006.
  8. Watt, J.M., & Breyer-Brandwijk, M.G. Medicinal and poisonous plants of Southern and Eastern Africa, E. & S. Lvingstone Ltd., Edinburgh and London 1962
  9. van Wyk, B-E., van Oudtshoorn, B. & Gericke, N. Medicinal plants of South Africa, Briza, Pretoria, 1997.