Pulicaria
Great Fleabane ( Pulicaria dysenterica )
The flea herbs ( Pulicaria ) constitute a genus of flowering plants in the sunflower family ( Asteraceae).
It is known especially the Great Fleabane ( Pulicaria dysenterica ), which was attributed as a medicinal plant effect, especially against the Ruhr. Even the Small Fleabane ( Pulicaria vulgaris) has medical benefits, it is still used in small animals against tick and flea infestation.
Description
The flea herb species are annual, biennial or perennial herbaceous plants, some species are also subshrubs or shrubs. You can reach heights of growth between 5 and 120 centimeters.
The lenticular and often wavy leaves are petiolate and not hairy, more or less woolly.
Add differently constructed total inflorescences are the basket- shaped part inflorescences. The stalked round, bloom conditions are so-called Pseudoanthien; seen flowers are ecologically and flowers are composed of many individual flowers. Are called protruding in three or four rows of bracts, the Phyllarien is the involucre. The high sheet sleeve that involucre is hemispherical or bell-shaped, reaching a diameter 5-10 mm. The flat inflorescence base ( receptaculum ) is smooth or finely honeycombed. There are no chaff leaves present. In the inflorescences are often tongue and tubular flowers. At the edge of the flower basket are usually 20 to 30 (10 to more than 60) florets, also called ray florets; they are fertile, bear stamp and are of a golden yellow color. In the center of the flower head there are between 40 and 100 tubular flowers, also called disc florets, the corolla tube is yellow.
Are formed achenes. The outer hair crown of Pappus is very short, the interior consists of ten to twelve longer bristles.
Occurrence
The distribution of Pulicaria types ranging from Europe over front to Central Asia and North Africa. In southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland Fleabane species are relatively common; in northern and eastern Germany they are scattered to rare. Pulicaria paludosa is found as a neophyte in North America.
Flea herbs love the humidity and are locally not rare to stream and river banks, wet meadows and grave edges. The elimination of many such habitats in recent decades has also directly here declines.
System
The genus name derives from the Latin pulex Pulicaria for flea and aria for concern, this refers to the use of the plant as a flea repellent. Some Pulicaria species was originally placed by Linnaeus with the closely related genus Inula, in the same genus Inula, but later assigned because of the different double crown of hair a separate genus. You Pulicaria genus was erected in 1791 by Joseph gardener in De fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum ..., 2 (3 ), pp. 461-462, Table 173, Figure 7. The systematics of flea herbs is controversial. Nevertheless, the flea herbs are closely related to the genus Elecampane (Inula ), but also with the professional herbs ( Conyza ) related, so that the assignment of some species is difficult. Synonyms for Pulicaria Gaertn. are: Francoeuria Cass. and Platychaete Boiss ..
In total, more than 100 species assigned to the genus, here is a small selection:
- Pulicaria alveolosa Batt. & Trot.
- Pulicaria arabica (L.) Cass.
- Burchard Fleabane ( Pulicaria burchardii Hutch. )
- Canarian Fleabane ( Pulicaria JAReyes canariensis )
- Pulicaria crispa ( Forssk. ) Benth. & Hook.f. ex Oliv. & Hiern
- Pulicaria chrysantha ( Diels ) Ling
- Great Fleabane, Ruhr Wurz ( Pulicaria dysenterica (L.) Bernh. )
- Pulicaria gnaphalodes ( Vent. ) Boiss.
- Pulicaria mauritanica Batt.
- Pulicaria microcephala Long
- Fragrant Fleabane ( Pulicaria odora (L.) Rchb. )
- Pulicaria paludosa Link
- Pulicaria petiolaris Jaub. & Spach
- Pulicaria pomeliana Faure & Maire
- Pulicaria prostrata ( Gilib. ) Ash
- Pulicaria salviifolia Bunge
- Pulicaria sicula (L.) Moris
- Pulicaria undulata (L. ) C. A. Mey.
- Small Fleabane ( Pulicaria vulgaris Gaertn. )
- Pulicaria wightiana C. B. Clarke