''Osmorhiza'' is a genus of

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

herbs, known generally as sweet cicely, sweetcicely, or sweetroot. Most species are native to North America, but some grow in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

. Some species are used for medicinal purposes, but have dangerous lookalikes. The fruits of this plant have barbs on the end allowing them to stick to clothing, fur, or feathers. American Indians used the roots of sweet cicely as a panacea. It was used as a tonic for upset stomach and to ease childbirth. The root was poulticed on boils and wounds, and a root tea was used as an eye wash.

Folk medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

list uses of the plant as an expectorant and as a tonic for coughs and for stomachaches.Peterson Field Guides (Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants and Herbs)

Species

*'' Osmorhiza aristata'' *'' Osmorhiza berteroi'' (Tapering sweetroot, mountain sweet cicely, mountain sweetroot) *'' Osmorhiza brachypoda'' (California sweet cicely) *'' Osmorhiza claytonii'' (Clayton's sweetroot, sweet cicely) *'' Osmorhiza depauperata'' (Bluntseed sweetroot) *'' Osmorhiza glabrata'' *'' Osmorhiza longistylis'' (American sweet cicely, sweet cicely, white cicely, longstyle sweetroot, aniseroot, licorice root, or wild anise) *'' Osmorhiza mexicana'' (Mexican sweet cicely) *'' Osmorhiza occidentalis'' (Western sweetroot) *'' Osmorhiza purpurea'' (Purple sweetroot)

References

External links

''Osmorhiza''
USDA Plants Database {{Taxonbar, from=Q3272856 Edible Apiaceae Apioideae genera Herbs Flora of Northern America Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque