Herb. No. 017 · Asteraceae
A circumboreal meadow plant — Europe, Asia, and North America share the species.
Native · Europe · North America · West Asia
Native Also grown
OpenCautionplant
Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
Achilles' woundwort — a bitter, aromatic styptic for fevers, cuts, and heavy moons.
Feathery leaves and flat white (sometimes pink) umbels. A pan-European and North American first-aid plant: crushed leaf on a nick, hot tea to bring on a sweat in a dry fever, cool tea as a bitter. High thujone chemotypes exist; ordinary garden yarrow is the one to grow.
Flavor
Bitter, aromatic, and a little numbing — a true European bitter.
Parts used
Aerial parts · Leaf
In favor
- Everywhere, identifiable, first-aid useful
- Pollinator magnet
Against
- Asteraceae allergy, including cross-reaction
- Bitter enough to nauseate some people
- Avoid in pregnancy (emmenagogue)