Artemisia dracunculus L.Asteraceae (Sunflower Family)Native
Dragon SagewortTarragonWormwood
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May Photo
Plant Characteristics:
Almost odorless or tarragon scented perennial with horizontal rhizome;
stem erect, 5-15 dm. tall, glabrous to villous-puberulent, brown; lvs. linear or
nearly so, 3-8 cm. long, entire or sometimes with few linear lobes, bright
green, glabrous, the lower mostly deciduous; panicle 15-45 cm. with elongate
leafy ascending branches; heads many, soon spreading or nodding; invol.
subglobose, 2-3 mm. broad; phyllaries 7-12, widely ovate, glabrous, light brown,
scarious-margined; fls. ca. 20-30, the outer female and fertile, the inner
sterile; aks. 0.5-0.8 mm., ellipsoid, glabrous, not ribbed.
Habitat:
Dry, +/- disturbed places, up to 11,000 ft.; Coastal Sage Scrub to
Montane Coniferous F. and above; cismontane s. Calif. to cent. Calif.; Joshua
Tree Wd. and above, Mojave Desert; to B.C., Wis., Tex.
Aug.-Oct.
Name:
See A. californica for notes on
name Artemisia. Latin, draconis, a
dragon. (Jaeger 85).
Both the species and common names refer to a dragon.
The reason for this is not clear to me. (my comment).
General:
Occasional in the study area. Found
mostly in the Santa Ana Heights area and on the Eastbluff bench. Photographed specimens are from Santa Ana Heights. (my
comments). A. dracunculus is known to cooks as terragon.
(Coon 87). Artemisia spp. were used as
food, the seeds and shoots; basketry, the stems; medicine, the bark, leaves and
stems; arrow shafts, the shoots; granary construction, the branches; tattooing
(green color), the leaves. (Heizer
& Elsasser 242). When
dried, this plant has a pleasant persistent fragrance.
(Murphy 51).
Artemisia species have been known to cause dermatitis.
(Fuller 370). Nearly all the all the species
are intensely bitter and strongly aromatic, making them useful either to
stimulate sweating in dry fevers or for indigestion and stomach acidity.
As the name signifies, Wormwood will help expel or at least inhibit
roundworm and pinworm infections, the secret being constancy, with at least two
cups of the tea a day for a period of a week or two.
The herb tarragon comes from
A. dracunculus.
(Moore, Medicinal Plants of the
Mountain West 162).
Text Ref:
Abrams, Vol. IV 410; Jepson 1142; Hickman, Ed. 204; Munz, Calif. Flora 1237; Munz, Flora
So. Calif 117.
Photo Ref:
May 3 83 # 13A,14A,15A; June 6 83 # 9,10; Feb 1 84 # 24A
Identity: by R. De Ruff, confirmed by F. Roberts.
First Found: May 1983.
Computer Ref: Plant Data 146
Have plant specimen.
Last edit 7/14/05.