| Wild Bergamot | ||||||||||||||||
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 Monarda fistulosa inflorescence
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| Monarda fistulosa L. |
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) is a wild flower native to North America.[1] This plant is often used as honey plant, medicinal plant, and ornamental plant.[2]
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Growth
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) is a native perennial from slender creeping rhizomes and thus commonly occurs in large clumps. Plants are up to 3 feet tall with a few erect branches. Leaves are 2-3 inches long, lance-shaped, and toothed. Flower clusters are solitary at the ends of branches. Each cluster is about 1 1/2 inches long and contains about 20-50 flowers.Look for wild bergamot in rich soils in dry fields, thickets, and clearings, usually on limy soil. It ranges from northeastern North America: from Quebec to Minnesota and south to Texas. The plant is noted for its fragrance, and is a source of oil of thyme. One authority states that Native Americans recognized four varieties that had different odors. Leaves were eaten boiled with meat and a decoction of the plant was made into hair pomade. The herb is considered an active diaphoretic (sweat inducer). Wild bergamot flowers from June - August.
Subspecies
- M. f. fistulosa
- M. f. brevis, the Smoke Hole bergamot
Uses
Wild bergamot was also considered a medicinal plant by many Native Americans including, (but not limited to) the Menominee, the Objibwe, and the Winnebago. It was used most commonly to cure colds, and was frequently made into a tea. Today, many families still use wild bergamot during the cold and flu season. The tea may be sweetened with honey, as it tends to be quite strong. [3]
Bee balm has a long history of use as a medicinal plant by many Native Americans including the Blackfeet. The Blackfeet Indians recognized this plants strong antiseptic action, and used poultices of the plant for skin infections and minor wounds. A tea made from the plant was also used to treat mouth and throat infections caused by dental caries and gingivitis. Bee balm is the natural source of the antiseptic Thymol, the primary active ingredient in modern commercial mouthwash formulas. The Winnebago used a tea made from bee balm as a general stimulant. Bee Balm was also used as a carminative herb by Native Americans to treat excessive flatulence. [4]
Scientific study
The essential oil of monarda fistulosa was analyzed using mass spectrometry and arithmetical retention indices, and was found to contain α-pinene (3.5%), β-pinene (2.9%), α-terpinene (1.7%), p-cymene (32.5), an aliphatic aldehyde (6.3%), sabinene hydrate (1.9%), β-caryophyllene (1.1%), the methyl ether of carvacrol (5.5%), citronellyl acetate (1.6%), thymol (12.6%), and carvacrol (24.0%).[5]
See also
Notes
- ^ Monarda fistulosa at USDA PLANTS Database
- ^ Plant Guide: Monarda fistulosa at USDA NRCS Plant Materials
- ^ [Wild Bergamot] at [1]
- ^ Edible and Medicinal Plants of the West, Gregory L. Tilford, ISBN 0-87842-359-1
- ^ V. A. Zamureenko, N. A. Klyuev, B. V. Bocharov, V. S. Kabanov and A. M. Zakharov, "An investigation of the component composition of the essential oil of Monarda fistulosa", Chemistry of Natural Compounds, Vol. 25, No. 5, Sep. 1989.
References
- Blanchan, Neltje (2002). Wild Flowers: An Aid to Knowledge of our Wild Flowers and their Insect Visitors. Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Monarda fistulosa |
- Connecticut Botanical Society: Monarda fistulosa
- Edibility of Monarda fistulosa: Visual identification and edible parts of Monarda fistulosa
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