Artemisia nilagirica - Nilgiri Wormwood

Nilgiri Wormwood

ative

Photo: Sushant More

Common name: Nilgiri Wormwood, Indian Wormwood, Fleabane, Mugwort • Hindi: नागदोना Nagdona, दवना Davana • Manipuri: ꯂꯩꯕꯥꯛꯉꯧ Leibakngou • Marathi: ढोरदवना Dhordavana, Gondhomaro • Tamil: மக்கீபூ Makkippu • Malayalam: മക്കീപൂവൂ Makkippuvu, മാസീപത്രീ Masipatri • Telugu: Masipatri • Kannada: ಮಂಚಿಪತ್ರೆ Manchipatre, ಮಂಚಿಪತ್ರ Manchipatra, ಮಂಚಪತ್ರಿ Manchapatri, ಮಂಜಪತ್ರೆ Manjepatre, ಉರಿಗಟ್ಟಿಗೆ Urigattige, ಉರುವಲು Uruvalu, ಕಾಡುಮಂಜಿಪತ್ರೆ Kaaduu manjipatre, ಕಾರಸಿ Kaarasi, ಕಾರಸೆ Kaarase, ನಾಗದಮನಿ Naagadamani • Bengali: নাগদানা Nagadana • Oriya: Dayona • Konkani: Surpin • Assamese: নীলম Nilum • Sanskrit: नागदमन Nagadaman, दमनक Damanak • Tangkhul: Harana

Botanical name: Artemisia nilagirica Family: Asteraceae (Sunflower family)
Synonyms: Artemisia vulgaris, Artemisia vulgaris var. nilagirica

Nilgiri Wormwood is a perennial herb, 20-60 cm tall, finely velvet-hairy or becoming hairless. Middle stem leaves are stalkless; leaf blade ovate or elliptic-ovate, 5-6 x 3-5 cm, below densely gray woolly, pinnately cut; segments 1-3 pairs, ovate or oblong-ovate, usually 1- or 2-sawtoothed, tapering at tip. Uppermost leaves and leaflike bracts are oblong-ovate, few sawtoothed. Flowers are borne in a broad panicle. Involucre is ovoid or ovoid-bell-shaped, 1-2 mm in diameter; phyllaries finely velvet-hairy. Marginal female florets are 3 or 4. Disk florets 4-8, bisexual. Achenes are obovoid. Flowering: August-October.

Identification credit: Sushant More

Photographed in Dandeghar, Maharashtra.

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