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Artemisia glacialis

Common name:	Glacier Wormwood	Family:	Compositae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	50, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Although no reports of toxicity have been seen for this species, skin contact with some members of this genus can cause dermatitis or other allergic reactions in some people[222].
Range:	C. Europe.
Habitat:	Exposed rocky slopes in the Alps[190]. Schistose rocks and screes, 2000 - 3100 metres[50].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	glacialis = frozen, glacial
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Asterales. Renamed to Asteraceae -- Aster family

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.18m by 0.3m . It is hardy to zone 5. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil and can tolerate drought.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Condiment.

The herb is used as a flavouring in vermouth and liqueurs[183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Digestive Expectorant Sedative Stomachic.

Glacier wormwood has similar medicinal properties to common wormwood, A, absinthum[7]. It is used locally where it grows wild. The whole plant is digestive, expectorant, sedative and stomachic[7]. An infusion of the herb has a marked effect upon mountain sickness[7]. A poultice of the plant is used as a first-aid remedy in the treatment of wounds[7].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Requires a very well-drained light or medium soil and a sunny position[190]. Very intolerant of winter wet[190]. Established plants are drought tolerant[190]. Plants are longer lived, more hardy and more aromatic when they are grown in a poor dry soil[245].
Indiscriminate collection of this plant from the wild has made it an endangered species[7].
Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[233].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow from late winter to early summer in a greenhouse, making sure that the compost does not dry out[200]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer.
Division in spring or autumn[200].
Basal cuttings in late spring. Harvest the young shoots when about10 - 15cm long, pot up in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse or cold frame and plant them out when well rooted. Very easy.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[7] Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[190] Chatto. B. The Dry Garden. Dent 1982 ISBN 0460045512
A good list of drought resistant plants with details on how to grow them.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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