Plants Used in Traditional Native American Medicine Codexery

Achillea millefolium

A perennial herb used in traditional Native American medicine.

Achillea millefolium is an erect, herbaceous perennial that grows 0.2 to 1 m tall with a spreading rhizomatous form.[1] Its leaves are fernlike, bipinnately or tripinnately divided, and the inflorescence produces white to pink ray and disk flowers from March to October.[1][2] When dried, the plant retains a noticeable spicy aroma that can be irritating to some individuals.[3]

Quick Facts

Species
millefolium

Facts from the source article.

Key facts and history

The genus name derives from the mythical Greek hero Achilles, who legend says carried the plant to treat battle wounds.[4] The name millefolium is derived from the featherlike leaves that are divided into many small segments.[4] The natural range of yarrow includes Europe, Asia, and North America, all within the temperate Northern Hemisphere.[5] Common yarrow occupies elevations from sea level up to 3500 m and is often found in grasslands and open forests where the soil has been mildly disturbed.[6]

In New Zealand and Australia, yarrow was brought in as livestock feed and has become a widespread weed in those countries.[7] Proazulenes are the chemical compounds responsible for the dark blue color of yarrow's essential oil.[8]

What the research sources say

The 1931 herbal by Grieve states that yarrow was formerly esteemed as a vulnerary, with old names including Soldier's Wound Wort and Knight's Milfoil.[9] Grieve also notes that the specific name millefolium derives from the many segments of its foliage, giving the popular names Milfoil and Thousand Weed.[9] The same source records that in the seventeenth century yarrow was an ingredient of salads.[9] The Native American Ethnobotany Database documents 266 uses of Achillea millefolium across multiple indigenous peoples.[10]

Because indigenous people used it to treat toothaches, Spanish speakers called it yerba muela or yerba de la muela, meaning 'molar tooth herb.'.[11]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Taylor, "Sagebrush Country: A Wildflower Sanctuary", Mountain Press Pub. Co, 1994, p. 158 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Spellenberg, "National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers: Western Region", Knopf, 2001, p. 352; Spellenberg, "National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers: Western Region", Knopf, 2001, p. 352 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Achillea millefolium", www.missouribotanicalgarden.org; Spellenberg, "National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers: Western Region", Knopf, 2001, p. 352 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chandler, "Ethnobotany and phytochemistry of yarrow, Achillea millefolium, compositae", Economic Botany, 1982, p. 203–223; Chandler, "Ethnobotany and phytochemistry of yarrow, Achillea millefolium, compositae", Economic Botany, 1982, p. 203–223 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Achillea millefolium", www.missouribotanicalgarden.org (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Achillea millefolium", www.missouribotanicalgarden.org; (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Achillea millefolium – yarrow", www.rnzih.org.nz; "Achillea millefolium – yarrow", www.rnzih.org.nz (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Michler, "Predicting Presence of Proazulenes in the Achillea millefolium Group", Folia Geobotanica, 1999, p. 143–161 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Grieve, "A Modern Herbal", 1931. facts only, no text reused. botanical.com
  10. "BRIT - Native American Ethnobotany Database", naeb.brit.org. facts only, no text reused. naeb.brit.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Achillea millefolium" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Janice, "Chumash Ethnobotany: Plant knowledge among the Chumash people of southern California", Heyday, 2007, p. 22 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Achillea millefolium (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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