Artemisia vulgaris: wormwood, felonherb, fleabane, green-ginger, Indian wormwood, maidenwort, motherwort, mugwort, sailor’s tobacco, St John’s plant, wild wormwood, wormwood

A highly polymorphic and widespread species in which a number of infraspecific taxa have been recognized. The infusion of leaves is said to be given in fever. The tomentum is used as moxa. Grown as a medicinal plant, most commonly as a vermifuge, Artemisia vulgaris is widely established in eastern North America and is often weedy in disturbed sites. Populational differences in morphologic forms are reflected in size of flowering heads, degree of dissection of leaves, and overall color of plants (from pale to dark green), suggesting multiple introductions that may date back to the first visits by Europeans. It is tempting to recognize the different forms as subspecies and varieties; the array of variation in the field is bewildering. If genetically distinct forms exist in native populations, the differences appear to have been blurred by introgression among the various introductions in North America. A case could be made for recognizing var. kamtschatica in Alaska based on its larger heads and shorter growth form; apparent introgression with populations that extend across Canada confounds that taxonomic segregation.

Common Names

in English: common mugwort, common wormwood, felonherb, fleabane, green-ginger, Indian wormwood, maidenwort, motherwort, mugwort, sailor’s tobacco, St John’s plant, wild wormwood, wormwood
in Bolivia: artemisa, altamiza, mark’u altamisa, mark’ualtamisa
in Southern Africa: umhlonyane (Zulu)
in China: ai ye, ai hao
in India: adavi-dhavanamu, apicinti, appa, arthamasia, baranjasif, barha, barhikusum, barhipushpa, boo-e-madran, brahmajata, buer, caciyatitam, caciyatitappattiri, cankali, cankalippattiri, chharmar, cinaccamanti, damanah, damanaka, damanakam, davana, davanamu, dhordhavana, dona, drubsha, charmar, charmar (khardar), gandhotkata, gathivana, gathona, granthika, granthiparna, granthiparnaka, granthiparni, guchhaka, gutthaka, jangli bhang, kakapushpa, kantanakuli, kattucetippu, kattucetti, kattuchatti, kattuchettippu, kheb-bija, khel bijak, kolacepikam, kolakacepikacceti, kolakacirisam, kolakaciritam, kukura, kulaputtiran, maasibattiri, maasipattiri, maccippaddiri, macha patri, maci, macipatri, macippaccai, macippattiri, mahibattiri, majtari, makkippu, manjipatri, marukozhunthu, marzangosh, marzanjosh, mashipatri, masipatchai, mastaru, nagadamani, nagadouna, nagdamani, nagdauna, nagdona, nakatamani, nattumacippattiri, nilampala, nilapushpa, nilum, nugduna, olikavipattiri, olikavippattiri, puspacamara, rirunittipacha, sak suk, saraparni, seski, sharaparni, shaweela, shirnakhya, shuka, shukabarha, shukachhada, shukapuccha, sthauneya, sugandha, surband, svaramaguchhaka, tailaparnaka, tapodhana, tavanam, tirunama, tirunamacceti, tirunirripacca, tirunitripaccha, tirunittipacca, titaypati, titepati, titipati, titpati, tiyamam, vacam, vanyadamanaka, varai, varaippattiram, varaippattiri
in Indonesia: baru cina, beunghar kucicing, suket ganjahan
in Lepcha: tuk nyil
in Malaysia: baru cina, bunga ayam hutan bateh, hiya
in the Philippines: damong Maria, erbaka, gilbas, kamaria, Santa Maria, tinisas
in Thailand: kot chulaalamphuaua
in Tibet: dha ma na ga, dhamanaga, smug-po, tshar-bong
in Vietnam: ngai curu, ngai diep, ng[ar]i c[uws]u, thu[oos]c c[uws]u, thuoc curu, nha ngai, qua su, co linh li

Floral Description

According to Flora of Pakistan:

A perennial, large, basally suffruticose shrub with several, closely growing, erect, simple cinereous or tomentose to glabrous, striate to shallowly grooved, reddish-tinged, (30-) 50-18 (-200) cm tall stems from the upright, 1.5-2 cm thick rootstock. Leaves densely whitish arachnoid hairy beneath, green and sparsely hairy to glabrous above, basally articulate; basal leaves petiolate, lamina broadly ovate, 5-12 (-15) x 3-6 (-8) cm, unipinnatisect into elliptic-ovate, pinnatifid primary segments with acute lobes; middle and upper stem leaves sessile to subsessile, deeply pinnate; uppermost in floral region undivided, lanceolate, entire, acute. Capitula heterogamous, numerous, subsessile, oblong, 3-4 x c. 2 mm, erect to ± nodding, in 10-40 x 5-25 cm, broadly pyramidate panicle with 5-20 cm long, upwardly directed primary and secondary branches. Involucre 4-seriate, phyllaries greyish arachnoid pubescent outside; outermost ovate, 1.5 x c. 1 mm, narrowly scarious on margins, acute; inner elliptic-oblong, c. 2 x 1.75 mm, broadly pale scarious margined, obtuse. Receptacle glabrous, hemispherical. Florets 10-30, yellow with reddish tinge; marginal florets 5-10, female, fertile, with 1.75-2 mm long, bidentate, glandulose corolla tube; disc florets 5-20, bisexual, fertile, with 1.5-2 mm long, narrowly tubular-campanulate 5-toothed glandulose corolla. Cypselas light brown, c. 1 mm long, finely striate.

According to Flora of China:

Herbs, perennial, (45-)60-160 cm tall, sparsely pubescent. Lowermost leaves shortly petiolate; leaf blade 2-pinnatisect. Middle stem leaves ± sessile; leaf blade elliptic, ovate-elliptic, suborbicular, or ovate-orbicular, 3-10(-15) × 1.5-6(-10) cm, abaxially densely gray arachnoid tomentose, adaxially sparsely arachnoid puberulent or glabrescent, 1- or 2-pinnatisect or pinnatipartite; segments (3 or)4 or 5, elliptic-lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 3-5 × 1-1.5 cm, rachis narrowly winged, few serrate or not. Uppermost leaves pinnatipartite; leaflike bracts 3-lobed or entire; lobes or entire bracts lanceolate. Synflorescence an ill-defined panicle, lateral branches often shorter than subtending leaves. Involucre oblong, 2.5-3(-3.5) mm; phyllaries densely arachnoid pubescent. Marginal female florets 7-10. Disk florets 8-20, bisexual. Achenes obovoid or ovoid. 

According to Flora of North America:

Perennials, (40–)60–190 cm, sometimes faintly aromatic (rhizomes coarse). Stems relatively numerous, erect, brownish to reddish brown, simple proximally, branched distally (angularly ribbed), sparsely hairy or glabrous. Leavesbasal (petiolate) and cauline (sessile), uniformly green or bicolor; blades broadly lanceolate, ovate, or linear, (2–)3–10(–12) × 1.8–8 cm (proximal reduced and entire, distal pinnately dissected, lobes to 20 mm wide), faces pubescent or glabrescent (abaxial) or glabrous (adaxial). Heads in compact, paniculiform or racemiform arrays (10–)20–30(–40) × (5–)7–15(–20) cm. Involucres ovoid to campanulate, 2–3(–4) mm. Phyllaries lanceolate, hairy or glabrescent. Florets: pistillate 7–10; bisexual (5–)8–20; corollas yellowish to reddish brown, 1.5–3 mm, glabrous (style branches arched-curved, truncate, ciliate). Cypselae ellipsoid, 0.5–1(–1.2) mm, glabrous, sometimes resinous

Phytochemicals

(-)-beta-Caryophyllene epoxide, (-)-beta-Sitosterol, 1-(3,3-Dimethyloxiranyl)-2,2-dimethyl-3-buten-1-one-epoxyartemisia ketone, 6,7-Methylenedioxy-8-methoxycoumarin, 6-Methoxy-7,8-methylenedioxycoumarin, alpha-Amyrin, alpha-Amyrin acetate, Artemisia triene, Dehydromatricaria ester, Isobornyl acetate, Isothujone, Spathulenol, Squalene, Stigmasterol, Tauremizin, Vulgarole

Activities and Uses:

Very poisonous to livestock. Occupational allergy, weed dermatitis. Antimalarial, vermifuge, antispasmodic, sedative, tonic, antihyperglycemic, hepatoprotective, diuretic, antipyretic, vulnerary, expectorant, stomachic and emmenagogue; used to treat menstrual disorders, epistaxis, hemorrhoids, vomiting, colic, asthma, earache, rheumatism, impetigo, diarrhea, and externally to treat skin diseases, ulcers and sores. Fresh leaves pounded with roots of Capparis assamica, extract applied on forehead in headache. Roots anthelmintic, but large doses cause harmful effect, uterus contraction, abortion. Whole plant burnt over the fire and the smoke drives out mosquitoes and other insects.