Roman Chamomile

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Roman Chamomile
Roman Chamomile
Roman Chamomile
Plant Info
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asterales
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Anthemis
Species: A. nobilis

Binomial name
Anthemis nobilis

Synonyms
Chamaemelum nobile

Anthemis nobilis, commonly known as Roman Camomile, Chamomile, garden camomile, ground apple, low chamomile, or whig plant, is a low European perennial plant found in dry fields and around gardens and cultivated grounds. The stem is procumbent, the leaves alternate, bipinnate, finely dissected, and downy to glabrous. The solitary, terminal flowerheads, rising 8 to twelve inches above the ground, consist of prominent yellow disk flowers and silver-white ray flowers. The flowering time is June and July, and its fragrance is sweet, crisp, fruity and herbaceous.

Chamomile is also used cosmetically, primarily to make a rinse for blonde hair, and is popular in aromatherapy, whose practitioners believe it to be a calming agent to end stress and aid in sleep.

Culture

The Chamomile is mentioned in Shakespeare's Henry IV, part 1 'The Camomile; The more it is trodden on, the faster it grows'.

Mary Wesley's novel The Camomile Lawn was also televised in Great Britain in the 1990s.

Folklore

Use of Chamomile dates back as far as ancient Egypt. Folk remedies using the plant include treatments for dropsy and jaundice. it was also believed to revive any wilting plant placed near it. The flowers were also used as a dye to lighten hair.

References

Howard, Michael. Traditional Folk Remedies (Century, 1987), p.112.

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