Botanical Name: Tanacetum vulgare
Family: Asteraceae (Compositae)
Other Names: Bachelor’s buttons, bitter buttons,
buttons, cheese, Chrysanthemum vulgare, C. tanacetum, parsley fern, scented
fern, wormwort
Habitat: Grassy and waste places, hedges, roadsides
Description: Hardy perennial almost hairless.
Up to 1m/3ft Stems branched towards top, creeping rootstock. Leaves un-stalked,
dark green, pinnate, toothed segments, ferny Flowers: Clusters of yellow,
button shaped, petalless July-October. Roots@ creeping Very aromatic
Native to: British Isles, Europe, and
W Asia
Parts used: Aerial parts
Cultivation: Full sun. Loamy, damp soil
Harvesting: Leaves, flowers: June –September
Actions: Anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic,
bitter tonic, carminative, diaphoretic, digestive, emmenagogue, febrifuge,
nervine, stimulant, tonic, vermifuge
Extraction: Steam distillation of whole herb
Constituents: Volatile oil:
sabinene, camphor, 1, 8-cineole, umbellulone, alpha-pinene, bornyl acetate,
germacrene D
Sesquiterpene lactones: parthenolide, partholide,
artemorin, tatridin A and B, tanachin, tamirin, 11, 13 dehdrodesacetylmaricarin,
l-epiludovicin-C, crispoloide
Sesquitpene alcohols: tanacetols A and B
Flavonoids: apigenin, diosmetin, quercetin, jaceidin, eupatorin,
eupatorin, chrysoeriol, jaceosidin
Circulatory muscle joint: Rheumatism
Immune: Roundworm, threadworm
Other Uses: Repel mice from
corn and earthworm from corpses. Flower arranging
Other Notes: Was made into
a special pudding at Easter after 6 weeks fasting
Often used by gypsies
Often used to embalm the dead
The name comes from the Greek word athanotos
meaning immortality
Caution: Use sparingly
Avoid during pregnancy