''Hedeoma pulegioides'', the American pennyroyal or American false pennyroyal,USDA Plants Profile
''Hedeoma pulegioides''
Accessed June 19, 2007. is a species of ''

Hedeoma ''Hedeoma'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to North and South America. They are commonly known as false pennyroyals. The genus name is derived from the Greek words ἡδύς (''hedys''), meaning "swee ...

'' native to eastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, from

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

and southern

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

west to

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

, and south to northern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

. It is a low-growing, strongly aromatic

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

annual plant An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to the production of seeds, within one growing season, and then dies. The length of growing seasons and period in which they take place vary according to geographical ...

from 15 to 30 cm tall, with a slender erect much-branched, somewhat hairy and square stem. The

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are small, thin, and rather narrow, with a strong mintlike odor and pungent taste. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are pale blue,

monoecious Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy. Monoecy is conne ...

, produced in small clusters; it flowers from mid to late summer.Plants for a Future
''Hedeoma pulegioides''
Accessed June 19, 2007. Other names are mock pennyroyal, squaw mint, tickweed, stinking balm, mosquito plant, American falsepennyroyal, and American false pennyroyal.NEWCro

NEWCrop's online transcription of the 1930 USDA publication March 11, 1998. Accessed June 19, 2007. The term "pennyroyal" (or ''pennyrile'', from a dialectal pronunciation) is also used to describe a geographic province of western

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, the

Pennyroyal Plateau The Pennyroyal Plateau or Pennyroyal Region, often spelled Pennyrile, is a large physiographic region of Kentucky that features rolling hills, caves, and karst topography in general. It is named for a wild mint that grows in the area. It is also c ...

, where ''H. pulegioides'' grew in profusion sufficient to lend its name to the whole area.

Etymology

The name ''pulegioides'' is derived from the Latin , and means "like pennyroyal", in reference to European pennyroyal (''Mentha pulegium'').Griffith, Chuck
''Dictionary of Botanical Epithets''
Accessed June 19, 2007. The name was given to European pennyroyal by

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic '' ...

in the first century CE, for its use in repelling fleas (, plural ) when it was spread on floors.

Uses

In the early 20th century, it was used "in

domestic medicine Domestic medicine or domestic health care is the behavioral, nutritional and health care practices, hygiene included, performed in the household and transmitted from one generation to the other. Such knowledge is complementary to the specialized ...

, in the form of a warm infusion, to promote

perspiration Perspiration, also known as sweating, is the production of fluids secreted by the sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distrib ...

and as an

emmenagogue Emmenagogues (also spelled ''emmenagogs'') are herbs which stimulate blood flow in the pelvic area and uterus; some stimulate menstruation. Women use emmenagogues to stimulate menstrual flow when menstruation is absent for reasons other than pregna ...

." Upon ingestion, one of its components, pulegone, metabolizes into

hepatotoxic Hepatotoxicity (from ''hepatic toxicity'') implies chemical-driven liver damage. Drug-induced liver injury is a cause of acute and chronic liver disease caused specifically by medications and the most common reason for a drug to be withdrawn fro ...

metabolites that depending on dosage can lead to organ failure, seizures, and death. In the 19th century it was recommended for flea control: "Sprigs of wild myrtle, or penny-royal, or small flat camphor-bags dispersed about your under-clothes, and conveniently fastened, will keep fleas from molesting your person during the day. At night, let penny-royal be scattered over the bed-covers, and laid under the pillows and bolster; strewing a large quantity between the sacking and the matrass. Wash yourself before going to bed in water that has had essence of pennyroyal mixed with it."

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5697201 pulegioides Flora of North America Plants described in 1762 Abortifacients

Etymology

Uses

See also

References