Tansy

Plant Characteristics
Habit		herbaceous
Height:	⇕	36 in"in" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 36. to 48 in"in" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 48.
Width:	⇔	36 in"in" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 36. to 48 in"in" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 48.
Lifespan:	⌛	perennial
Poisonous:	☠	can be toxic
Bloom:	❀	early spring, mid spring, late spring, early summer, mid summer, late summer

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	sun, part-sun
Features:	✓	flowers
USDA Zones:		4 to 9
Flower features:	❀	orange, yellow

Scientific Names
Asteraceae >	Tanacetum >	vulgare >			L. >

Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant of the aster family that is native to temperate Europe and Asia. It has been introduced to other parts of the world and, in some areas, has become invasive. It is also known as Common Tansy, Bitter Buttons, Cow Bitter, Mugwort, or Golden Buttons.

The Mugwort used in acupuncture as Moxa is not this plant, but Artemisia vulgaris.

Tansy is a flowering herbaceous plant with finely divided compound leaves and yellow, button-like flowers. It has a stout, somewhat reddish, erect stem, usually smooth, 50—150 cm tall, and branching near the top. The leaves are alternate, 10—-15 cm long and are pinnately lobed, divided almost to the center into about seven pairs of segments, or lobes, which are again divided into smaller lobes having saw-toothed edges, thus giving the leaf a somewhat fernlike appearance. The roundish, flat-topped, button-like, yellow flower heads are produced in terminal clusters from mid to late summer. The scent is similar to that of camphor with hints of rosemary. The leaves and flowers are said to be poisonous if consumed in large quantities. The plant’s volatile oil is high in thujone, a substance found in absinthe that can cause convulsions. Some insects, notably the Tansy beetle, have evolved resistance to Tansy and live almost exclusively on it.

Read about Tansy in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare, Linn.). A coarse-growing herbaceous perennial naturalized from middle Europe, and a familiar occupant of old gardens, waste places, and roadsides. Its common name is said to be derived from athanasia, immortality, an idea suggested to the ancient Greeks by the characteristic permanent possession it takes of the soil. Its annual upright usually unbranched stems, which rise about 3 feet from the perennial root, bear greatly divided deeply cut compound bitter aromatic leaves and rather dense corymbs of numerous small yellow flower-heads which appear in midsummer. The seed, which is small, is marked by five rather prominent grayish ribs and retains its vitality for about two years. Formerly its leaves were in great favor as a seasoning for various culinary preparations, especially puddings and omelettes, uses now almost obsolete. By the medical profession, its tonic and stimulant properties and its efficacy in hysterical and dropsical disorders are still recognized, although other medicines are more popular. In domestic practice it played an early role as an anthelmintic and stomachic and is still somewhat popular as a local agent to relieve the pain of muscular rheumatism, bruises, and chronic ulcers. The wild plants usually satisfy all demands, but when no wild supply is at hand seed may be used to start the half-dozen specimens that a family should need. Easily started, readily transplanted or divided, tansy requires no special care in cultivation except to keep it clear of weeds and to prevent its spreading and thus becoming troublesome. It will thrive in almost all soils and situations that are not too wet. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Read about Tansy in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
Tanacetum vulgare, Linn. (Chrysanthemum vulgare, Bernh.). Tansy. St. robust, erect, 2-3 ft., leafy to the summit: lvs. pinnately divided into linear-lanceolate segms. which are serrate or pinnately cut: fl.- heads 1/4 – 1/2 in. across, numerous, in a dense flat-topped cyme. July-Sept. Eu. Adventive in the U. S. Var. crispum, DC., has the lvs. more cut and crisped. The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.