Artemisia californica

Description

Artemisia californica branches from the base and grows into a rounded shape, reaching 1.5 to 2.5 m tall. Its stems are slender, flexible, and either hairless or fuzzy. The leaves are 1 to 10 cm long, pinnately divided into 2–4 threadlike lobes under 5 cm, hairy, light green to gray, with margins that curl under. The inflorescences are leafy, narrow, and sparse, with capitula less than 5 mm across. Pistillate flowers number 6 to 10, and disk flowers range from 15 to 30, generally yellowish but sometimes red. Unlike many other Asteraceae, the blooms are small and unnoticeable; the silvery, fragrant leaves are the plant's most notable feature. The essential oils that produce the pleasant perfume also deter animal and insect pests. The fruits are resinous achenes up to 1.5 mm long, with a pappus forming a minute crown. The plant contains terpenes that make it quite aromatic.

Distribution and habitat

This shrub grows naturally only in western California and northwestern Baja California, within the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion. It thrives in coastal sage scrub, coastal strand, chaparral, and dry foothill areas from sea level up to 800 meters. It also appears on several islands near the Baja California peninsula, such as the Coronado Islands, Cedros Island, and Guadalupe Island. Its typical plant community is chaparral, especially in the California Coast Ranges. People often say it is allelopathic, releasing chemicals into the soil that stop other plants from growing nearby.

Cultivation

California sagebrush is a shrub grown in native plant gardens and used to restore damaged coastal sage scrub. Several shorter varieties exist for use as drought-tolerant groundcover. It does best in full sun on west- or north-facing slopes, needs very little water, and prefers none during summer. Soil type has little effect on its growth. Wildfire triggers seed germination, and burned plants can regrow from the crown. Animals rarely eat it because of its bitter, aromatic compounds, but its stems provide good cover for small birds and other wildlife. It is a key habitat plant for the endangered California gnatcatcher.

Uses

The Chumash used Artemisia californica for many purposes: stem wood served as the horizontal piece of a fire drill, arrow fore-shafts, and fuel; branches were used as windbreaks and brush barricades; leaves and branches served as incense and disinfectants in funeral rituals. Leaves were tied to the forehead or rubbed in water and applied to the head to treat headaches, and carried inside hats to feel cooler. Boiled leaves were inhaled as steam to treat paralysis, and decoctions were used for poison oak.

The plant fumigated homes after funerals, and bundles were erected during winter solstice ceremonies. The Cahuilla chewed leaves, dried or fresh, to treat coughs and colds; they used decoctions in girls' puberty rites, before menstruation with dietary restrictions, and gave them to newborn babies a day after birth to purge the body. The Cahuilla and Tongva used it to alleviate menstrual cramps and ease labor, as it stimulates the uterine mucosa and quickens childbirth.

The Ohlone applied leaves to teeth or over wounds as a pain reliever. Decoctions bathed patients with colds, coughs, and rheumatism, and were taken internally for asthma, with back and chest poultices. A liniment made from the plant is a powerful pain reliever; its monoterpenoids interact with transient receptor potential cation channels, and sesquiterpenes may also be involved. The liniment is said to be more powerful than opioid drugs and much safer; a small amount applied to the affected area relieves pain, including from broken bones, arthritis, sprains, and strains, within 20 minutes.