''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savory ...

. They are all

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 ...

plants native to Europe, Asia,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and

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 ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and stream banks. Some of the wetland species have become endangered.

Appearance

The genus includes only perennial species; they spread by both seeds and stems rooting as they grow along the ground. Small white flowers bloom in late summer on leaf axials. Leaves are bright green, pointed, lobed, and like all mints occur in opposite pairs. Some species start with curled purple leaves that unfurl to a bright green coloration. The species in this genus vary in size, but generally grow to about .

Ethnobotanical history

The plant's juice yields black

dye A dye is a colored substance that chemically bonds to the substrate to which it is being applied. This distinguishes dyes from pigments which do not chemically bind to the material they color. Dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution an ...

, supposedly used by the

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

in Europe to tan their skin to mimic

Egyptians Egyptians ( arz, المَصرِيُون, translit=al-Maṣriyyūn, ; arz, المَصرِيِين, translit=al-Maṣriyyīn, ; cop, ⲣⲉⲙⲛ̀ⲭⲏⲙⲓ, remenkhēmi) are an ethnic group native to the Nile, Nile Valley in Egypt. Egyptian ...

, hence the common name of ''Gypsywort'' for ''

Lycopus europaeus ''Lycopus europaeus'', common names gypsywort, gipsywort, bugleweed, European bugleweed and water horehound, is a perennial plant in the genus ''Lycopus'', native to Europe and Asia, and naturalized elsewhere. Another species, ''Lycopus american ...

.'' Apothecaries and herbalists used the leaves, stems, and flowers for their astringent and sedative qualities as well as for anxiety, tuberculosis, and palpitations.

Fossil record

Fossil seeds of †''Lycopus antiquus'' are known from the Middle Miocene

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...

of southern Russia, from the Miocene of Lower Lusatia, Germany, and from the Late Miocene

of western Siberia and Ukraine. ''Lycopus antiquus'' has possibly been applied to more than one

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

species which were widely distributed in Europe and Siberia from the Miocene to the Pliocene. Extant Lycopus species whose fruits most resemble ''L. antiquus'', are the East Asian ''Lycopus lucidus'' and the Eurasian ''Lycopus exaltatus''.

Species

#''

Lycopus alissoviae ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and s ...

'' Prob. – Primorye region of Russia #''

Lycopus americanus ''Lycopus americanus'', common names American water horehound or American bugleweed, is a member of the genus ''Lycopus ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants ...

'' Muhl. ex W.P.C.Barton – American bugleweed - widespread across most of United States and Canada #''

Lycopus amplectens Lycopus amplectens, common names clasping-leaved water-horehound, sessile-leaved bugleweed, and sessile-leaved water-horehound, is a species of ''Lycopus'' native to North America. Conservation status in the United States It is listed as endang ...

'' Raf. – eastern United States #''

Lycopus angustifolius ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and s ...

'' Elliott – southeastern United States #''

Lycopus asper ''Lycopus asper'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and inclu ...

'' Greene – rough bugleweed - western Canada, western + central United States #''

Lycopus australis ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and s ...

'' R.Br. – Australian Gypsywort - Australia #''

Lycopus cavaleriei ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' H.Lév. – Korean bugleweed - China, Japan, Korea, Sakhalin, Kuril Islands #'' Lycopus charkeviczii'' Prob. – Primorye region of Russia #'' Lycopus cokeri'' H.E.Ahles ex Sorrie – North Carolina, South Carolina #''

'' L. – Gypsywort - Europe, North Africa, northern Asia; naturalized in New Zealand and North America #''

Lycopus exaltatus ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' L.f. – central + eastern Europe, Siberia, Central Asia, Xinjiang, Caucasus, Western Himalayas #''

Lycopus hirtellus ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and str ...

'' Kom. – Primorye region of Russia #''

Lycopus × intermedius ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' Hausskn. – Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Greece ''(L. europaeus × L. exaltatus)'' #'' Lycopus kurilensis'' Prob. – Kuril Islands #''

Lycopus laurentianus ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' Roll.-Germ. – Quebec #''

Lycopus lucidus ''Lycopus lucidus'' is a species of plant in the family Lamiaceae. The aerial parts (澤蘭, 泽兰 zélán) and the dried rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and sh ...

'' Turcz. ex Benth. – Traditional Chinese Medicine herb to make ''

Lycopi rhizoma ''Lycopus lucidus'' is a species of plant in the family Lamiaceae. The aerial parts (澤蘭, 泽兰 zélán) and the dried rhizomes (地筍, 地笋 dìsǔn) are used in traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is a ...

'' - China, Japan, Korea, Siberia, Russian Far East #''

Lycopus rubellus ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' Moench – central + eastern United States #''

Lycopus × sherardii ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and s ...

'' Steele – Quebec, Ontario, eastern United States #''

Lycopus sichotensis ''Lycopus'' (water horehound, gypsywort, or bugleweed) is a genus in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America. The species are most often found in wetlands, damp meadows, and strea ...

'' Prob. – Primorye region of Russia #''

Lycopus uniflorus ''Lycopus uniflorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name northern bugleweed. It is native to much of North America (Canada, United States) and east Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Russian Far East) ''Lycopus ...

'' Michx. – northern bugleweed - Canada, United States. China, Japan, Korea, Russian Far East #''

Lycopus virginicus ''Lycopus virginicus'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by many common names, including Virginia water horehound, Lamiaceae genera Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus