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NAME: MUGWORT

SPECIES / FAMILY:  Artemisia Vulgaris / Asteraceae or Compositae

COMMON NAME(S):

CONDITIONS:  sun, farm fields, urban areas

 

PARTS:	EDIBLE	TASTE	RAW/COOK	SEASON
All
Shoots		sage	DRY/COOK	Spring-Fall
Leaves		sage	DRY/COOK	Spring-Fall
Buds/Flowers		sage	DRY/COOK	Summer-Fall
Fruits
Roots
Seeds
Nuts
Pods
Stalk
Bark

PORTION: small, herb

COMMENT:  Although PFAF.org says it can be eaten raw, perhaps it's safer to use dried or cooked. Used in stews, baked goods, teas, and alcoholic beverages.  Tastes like sage. // "METHOD OF PREPARATION: We will let Cornucopia II do that: “young shoots and leaves are an indispensable condiment for fatty poultry such as geese and duck as well as fat pork, mutton, and eel. In Japan they are boiled and eaten as a potherb, or used to give flavor and color to festival rice-cakes… Dried leaves and flowering tops are added to country beer, or seeped into tea. At one time in China the leaves were used for wrapping glutinous rice dumplings eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival.” (2)

CAUTION: Might be poisonous in large doses. Allergic reactions. Skin contact dermatitis in some people. Probably unsafe for pregnant women as it may stimulate the uterus to contract and induce abortion.(1) Exercise caution. I only use it cooked or dried with other foods and in very small amounts, not every day, and not by itself in a tea in the evening. Perhaps the safest way for lucid dreaming is to put dried mugwort in a sachet and breath in the fragrance for a few minutes. Editor

NUTRITION/MEDICINAL:  "Mugwort has a long history of use in herbal medicine especially in matters connected to the digestive system, menstrual complaints and the treatment of worms[238]. It is slightly toxic, however, and should never be used by pregnant women, especially in their first trimester, since it can cause a miscarriage[7, 238]. Large, prolonged dosage can damage the nervous system[268]. All parts of the plant are anthelmintic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, carminative, cholagogue, diaphoretic, digestive, emmenagogue, expectorant, nervine, purgative, stimulant, slightly tonic and used in the treatment of women's complaints[4, 7, 13, 21, 147, 165, 178, 201]. 

ALSO:
https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/herbs-and-spices/mugwort-tea.html 
https://herbs-treatandtaste.blogspot.com/2012/07/japanese-mugwort-yomogi-health-benefits.html

Look-A-Likes: Epazote and related to Sweet Annie and Artemisia absinthium (wormwood) is the specific species of artemisia.

POISONOUS LOOK-A-LIKES: 

OTHER USES: insect repellent, fragrance, tinder for fires, food for moths & butterflies (1) Studied for use in reclamation and phytoremediation of contaminated soils and waters.-https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26269111

SOURCE LINKS (may include nutritional and medicinal info, plus other uses):

1. https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Artemisia+vulgaris
2. http://www.eattheweeds.com/mugwort
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemisia_vulgaris
4. http://www.ediblewildfood.com/mugwort.aspx
5. https://www.herbrally.com/monographs/mugwort
6. https://www.outdoorapothecary.com/mugwort
7. https://www.indigo-herbs.co.uk/natural-health-guide/benefits/mugwort
8. https://medium.com/@3LittleBears/mugwort-the-wild-edible-and-recipes-5b3e0f0bc0d0 (recipes)
9. https://gathervictoria.com/2017/10/25/foraging-cooking-with-coastal-mugwort-a-salt-honey-vinegar (recipes)
10. https://www.backyardforager.com/mugwort-soup-recipe-yes-really (recipes)
11. https://www.eatweeds.co.uk/mugwort-jelly-recipe (recipe)

COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT SPECIES OF ARTEMISIA:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/artemisia-genus

Fig. 1. Leaves and synflorescences of four Artemisia species. (A) Artemisia absinthium. (B) Artemisia annua (Sweet Annie). (C) Artemisia dracunculus (French Tarragon). (D) (Mugwort) Artemisia vulgaris. For each species, the leaves placed in the upper or left side show the adaxial face and those placed in the lower or right side show the abaxial face. Photographs by P. Barnola, A. Mallol and L. Vilar (synflorescences of A. absinthium—detail—and A. dracunculus), G. Pié (synflorescence of A. annua) and J. Vallès (the rest).