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Botanical Name :Chrysanthemum leucanthemum
Family: Asteraceae
Genus: Leucanthemum
Species: L. vulgare
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Asterales
Syn. :Leucanthemum vulgare
Common Names:Oxeye Daisy , marguerite, moon daisy ,common daisy, dog daisy and oxe-eye daisy.
Habitat :Leucanthemum vulgare is native to Europe and the temperate regions of Asia and an introduced plant to North America, Australia, and New Zealand. It is one of a number of Asteraceae family plants to be called a “daisy”, and has the vernacular names: common daisy, dog daisy, moon daisy, and oxe-eye daisy.It grows in a variety of plant communities including meadows and fields, under scrub and open-canopy forests, and in disturbed areas.
Description:
Leucanthemum vulgare is a perennial herb 2 feet (61 cm) high by 1 foot (0.30 m) wide. The stem is mostly unbranched and sprouts laterally from a creeping rhizomatous rootstock.
The leaves are dark green on both sides. The basal and middle leaves are petiolate, obovate to spoon-shaped, and serrate to dentate. The upper leaves are shorter, sessile, and borne along the stem.
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Leucanthemum vulgare blooms from late spring to autumn. The small flower head, not larger than 5 centimetres (2.0 in), consists of about 20 white ray florets that surround a yellow disc, growing on the end of 1 to 3 ft (30 to 91 cm) tall stems. The plant produces an abundant number of flat seeds, without pappus, that remain viable in the soil for 2 to 3 years. It also spreads vegetatively by rhizomes.
Edible Uses: The un-opened flower buds can be marinated and used in a similar way to capers.
Medicinal Uses:
The oxeye daisy has medicinal properties similar to chamomile , but much weaker. 1 The balsamic flowers were once much more used as a country simple than today, when the flowers, stalks and leaves were used to make an infusion to relieve chronic coughs. The root was also employed as a fluid extract for treating night sweats in pulmonary consumption in early America.
Used for gastrointestinal, throat, skin, women’s circulatory and urinary concerns. Make into infusions, tinctures, ointments, salves, foot soaks and as a bath herb.
Leucanthemum vulgare , a midsummer flower known a marguerite, was used as an oracle. A daisy is the star flower of Gretchen in Goethe’s Faust: “He loves me, he loves me not”. Those who are pregnant as “Boy, girl, boy girl as they pluck the raylike flowers. Girls would put the flower under their pillows to see dreams of their future husbands. Claudia Muller-Ebeling, Wolf-Deieter Storl Witchcraft Medicine(1998)
The herb is under the sign Cancer, and under the dominion of Venus, and therefore excellently good for wounds in the breast, and very fitting to be kept both in oils, ointments, and plaisters, as also in syrup. The greater wild Daisy is a wound herb of good respect, often used in those drinks or salves that are for wounds, either inward or outward. The juice or distilled water of these, or the small Daisy, doth much temper the heat of choler, and refresh the liver, and the other inward parts. A decoction made of them and drank, helps to cure the wounds made in the hollowness of the breast. The same also cures all ulcers and pustules in the mouth or tongue, or in the secret parts. The leaves bruised and applied to the privities, or to any other parts that are swollen and hot, doth dissolve it, and temper the heat. A decoction made thereof, of Wallwort and Agrimony, and the places fomented and bathed therewith warm, gives great ease to them that are troubled with the palsy, sciatica, or the gout.
Other Uses:
Leucanthemum vulgare is widely cultivated and available as a perennial flowering ornamental plant for gardens and designed meadow landscapes. It thrives in a wide range of conditions and can grow in sun to partial shade, and prefers damp soils. There are cultivars, such as ‘May Queen’ which begins blooming in early spring.
Known Hazards:
Allergies: Allergies to daises do occur, usually causing contact dermatitis
Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider
Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leucanthemum_vulgare
http://www.anniesremedy.com/herb_detail446.php
http://www.herbnet.com/Herb%20Uses_OPQ.htm