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{{unreferenced|date=December 2006}}
{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Southernwood
| image = Artemisia abrotanum0.jpg
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| genus = [[Artemisia (plant)|Artemisia]]
| species = '''''A. abrotanum'''''
| binomial = ''Artemisia abrotanum''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
'''Southernwood''' (''Artemisia abrotanum'') is a [[flowering plant]]. Found in [[Europe]] and [[Great Britain]], the genus ''[[Artemisia (plant)|Artemisia]]'' was named for the Goddess [[Artemis]]. Southernwood is known by many other names including Old Man, Boy's Love, Oldman Wormwood, Lover's Plant, Appleringie, Garderobe, Our Lord's Wood, Maid's Ruin, Garden Sagebrush, European Sage, Lad's Love, Southern Wormwood, and Lemon Plant.
The plant is a member of the [[genus]] ''Artemisia'', along with mugwort and [[Wormwood]] (an ingredient in the popular and infamous liquor [[absinthe]], once widely banned, but available again in Europe and as of mid-2007 in the United States as well). Southernwood has a strong [[camphor]]-like odour and was historically used as an air freshener or strewing herb.
It forms a small bushy [[shrub]], which is widely cultivated by gardeners. The grey-green leaves are small, narrow and feathery. The small flowers are yellow. It can easily be propagated by [[cutting (plant)|cuttings]], or by division of the roots.
==Uses==
===Medicinal===
Southernwood encourages [[menstruation]] (Culpeper 1653), is [[antiseptic]] and kills [[intestinal worms]]. It was used to treat [[liver]], [[spleen]] and [[stomach]] problems. It is seldom used medicinally today, except in [[Germany]], where [[poultice]]s are placed on wounds, splinters and skin conditions and it is employed occasionally to treat [[frostbite]]. Its constituents have been shown to stimulate the [[gallbladder]] and [[bile]], which improves digestion and liver functions. The leaves are mixed with other herbs in aromatic baths and is said to counter sleepiness. An infusion of the leaves is said to work as a natural insect repellent when applied to the skin or if used as a hair rinse is said to combat [[dandruff]].
===Historical===
The Romans believed it protected men from [[impotence]]. It is also said that young men in areas like [[Spain]] and [[Italy]] rubbed fresh southernwood leaves (which were [[lemon]]-scented) on their faces to promote the growth of a beard.
In rural areas, where southernwood was known as Lad's Love and Maid's Ruin, the herb acquired a reputation for increasing young men's virility. It was popularly employed in [[love potion]]s and adolescent boys rubbed an ointment on their cheeks to speed up the growth of facial hair. It is associated with sexual appeal and has been used by males to increase their virility. Southernwood was put under mattresses in [[Ancient Greece]] and [[Ancient Rome]] for its aphrodisiacal properties to rouse lust in its occupants. Its common nickname, Lad's Love, refers to the habit of including a spray of the plant in country bouquets presented by lovers to their lasses in order to seduce them.
===Other===
A yellow dye can be extracted from the branches of the plant, for use with [[wool]]. Its dried leaves are used to keep [[moth]]s away from wardrobes. Burned as an incense, southernwood guards against trouble of all kinds, and the smoke drives away [[snake]]s (Culpeper 1653). The volatile oil in the leaves is responsible for the strong, sharp, scent which repels moths and other insects. It was customary to lay sprays of the herb amongst clothes, or hang them in closets, and this is the origin of southernwood's [[French language|French]] name, garderobe ("clothes-preserver"). Judges carried [[Posy|posies]] of southernwood and [[rue]] to protect themselves from prisoner's contagious diseases, and some church-goers relied on the herb's sharp scent to keep them awake during long sermons.
The pungent, scented leaves and flowers are used in [[Tisane|herbal teas]]. Young shoots were used to flavor pastries and puddings. In Italy, it is used as a culinary herb.
==Sources==
*Nicholas Culpeper, "The English Physician, or Herball", 1653, Bloomsbury Edition: 1985, Bloomsbury Books: London
==External links==
*[http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Arte_abr.html Southernwood Spice Page]
*[http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/1139/ Detailed information and pictures from PlantFiles]
*[http://www.smallflower.com/search/abrotanum Purchase Abrotanum (Southernwood)]
[[Category:Artemisia]]
{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Southernwood
| image = Artemisia abrotanum0.jpg
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Asterales]]
| familia = [[Asteraceae]]
| genus = [[Artemisia (plant)|Artemisia]]
| species = '''''A. abrotanum'''''
| binomial = ''Artemisia abrotanum''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
'''Southernwood''' (''Artemisia abrotanum'') is a [[flowering plant]]. Found in [[Europe]] and [[Great Britain]], the genus ''[[Artemisia (plant)|Artemisia]]'' was named for the Goddess [[Artemis]]. Southernwood is known by many other names including Old Man, Boy's Love, Oldman Wormwood, Lover's Plant, Appleringie, Garderobe, Our Lord's Wood, Maid's Ruin, Garden Sagebrush, European Sage, Lad's Love, Southern Wormwood, and Lemon Plant.
The plant is a member of the [[genus]] ''Artemisia'', along with mugwort and [[Wormwood]] (an ingredient in the popular and infamous liquor [[absinthe]], once widely banned, but available again in Europe and as of mid-2007 in the United States as well). Southernwood has a strong [[camphor]]-like odour and was historically used as an air freshener or strewing herb.
It forms a small bushy [[shrub]], which is widely cultivated by gardeners. The grey-green leaves are small, narrow and feathery. The small flowers are yellow. It can easily be propagated by [[cutting (plant)|cuttings]], or by division of the roots.
==Uses==
===Medicinal===
Southernwood encourages [[menstruation]] (Culpeper 1653), is [[antiseptic]] and kills [[intestinal worms]]. It was used to treat [[liver]], [[spleen]] and [[stomach]] problems. It is seldom used medicinally today, except in [[Germany]], where [[poultice]]s are placed on wounds, splinters and skin conditions and it is employed occasionally to treat [[frostbite]]. Its constituents have been shown to stimulate the [[gallbladder]] and [[bile]], which improves digestion and liver functions. The leaves are mixed with other herbs in aromatic baths and is said to counter sleepiness. An infusion of the leaves is said to work as a natural insect repellent when applied to the skin or if used as a hair rinse is said to combat [[dandruff]].
===Historical===
The Romans believed it protected men from [[impotence]]. It is also said that young men in areas like [[Spain]] and [[Italy]] rubbed fresh southernwood leaves (which were [[lemon]]-scented) on their faces to promote the growth of a beard.
In rural areas, where southernwood was known as Lad's Love and Maid's Ruin, the herb acquired a reputation for increasing young men's virility. It was popularly employed in [[love potion]]s and adolescent boys rubbed an ointment on their cheeks to speed up the growth of facial hair. It is associated with sexual appeal and has been used by males to increase their virility. Southernwood was put under mattresses in [[Ancient Greece]] and [[Ancient Rome]] for its aphrodisiacal properties to rouse lust in its occupants. Its common nickname, Lad's Love, refers to the habit of including a spray of the plant in country bouquets presented by lovers to their lasses in order to seduce them.
===Other===
A yellow dye can be extracted from the branches of the plant, for use with [[wool]]. Its dried leaves are used to keep [[moth]]s away from wardrobes. Burned as an incense, southernwood guards against trouble of all kinds, and the smoke drives away [[snake]]s (Culpeper 1653). The volatile oil in the leaves is responsible for the strong, sharp, scent which repels moths and other insects. It was customary to lay sprays of the herb amongst clothes, or hang them in closets, and this is the origin of southernwood's [[French language|French]] name, garderobe ("clothes-preserver"). Judges carried [[Posy|posies]] of southernwood and [[rue]] to protect themselves from prisoner's contagious diseases, and some church-goers relied on the herb's sharp scent to keep them awake during long sermons.
The pungent, scented leaves and flowers are used in [[Tisane|herbal teas]]. Young shoots were used to flavor pastries and puddings. In Italy, it is used as a culinary herb.
==Sources==
*Nicholas Culpeper, "The English Physician, or Herball", 1653, Bloomsbury Edition: 1985, Bloomsbury Books: London
==External links==
*[http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Arte_abr.html Southernwood Spice Page]
*[http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/1139/ Detailed information and pictures from PlantFiles]
*[http://www.smallflower.com/search/abrotanum Purchase Abrotanum (Southernwood)]
[[Category:Artemisia]]