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Hyssop
| By goGreen | June 10, 2012 |  |
Family: Lamiaceae
Scientific Name: Hyssopus officinalis
General Information
Earliest reference to the plant goes back to the seventh century. Its camphorlike odor found utility as a cleansing herb, and as an odor-eater was strewn in sickrooms and kitchen floors.
Botany
A strongly aromatic perennial belonging to the mint family, upright and with many branched square stems. Leaves are opposite, linear to lanceolate, hairless, long and sessile, 1 – 1 1/2 inches long. Flowers are in whorls with a tubular corolla, two-lipped, blue or violet in color, with bell-shaped calyxes.
Constituents and chemical properties
The volatile oil is a key ingredient to some liquers.
The aromatic volatile oil is found in its leaves, stems, and flowers.
Considered antiseptic, astringent, carminative, emmenagogue, expectorant, purgative, stomachic.
Antibacterial property attributed to volatile oils.
Distribution
Cultivated as ornamental and herbal plant.
Occasionally grown as ground cover.
Parts utilized and collection
Flowers, leaves.
Cut the stems before the flowers open, hang the bunches upside down in a warm and dark place.
Caution
Shares a common name with Artmesia vulagris.
Cross-allergenicity in those sensitive to plants in the Asteraceae/Compositae family; ie, ragweed, chrysanthemums, marigolds and daisies.
Uses
Culinary
Leaves and flowers are edible.
It’s minty leaves and flowers used as flavoring for salads, soups, and poultry stuffing.
Although too pungent for most palates, it has been used for herbal wines.
Folkloric
Tincture and tea of the flower used to cure jaundice and dropsy.
Helps improve stomach tone.
Crushed leaves or poultice of ground leaves promotes healing of wounds and bruises.
Hot vapors of its decoctions for inflammation of the ears.
Infusion or decoction used for wound cleansing.
Decoction of flowers used as expectorant.
Used for liver and gall bladder complaints.
As gargle and expectorant for colds and respiratory ailments.
Infusion of leaves used externally for rheumatism.
Others
Flowers and leaves used for herbal baths.
Aromatic oil used in perfumes and potpourris.
Bees, birds and butterflies are attracted to its flowers.
Studies
• Antifungal: ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF ESSENITAL OIL HYSSOPUS OFFICINALIS L. AGAINST MYCOPATHOGEN MYCOGONE PERNICIOSA (MANG): In the study, the essential oil of HO showed a very strong antifungal activity. The most abundant components in oil are isopinocamphone (43%), pinocamphoe (16%) and b-pinene (16%). The essential oil was fungistatic on Aspergillus fumigatus. The strong antifungal potential of Hyssop essential oil can be explained by the high amount of ketons, its main contituents.
• Antimicrobial: Study yielded pinocamphone and isopinocamphone. All yeasts were strongly inhibited, seven strains of C albicans, C krusei and C tropicalis. Limonene may be responsible for the antimycotic action.
• Diabetes / a-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activity: Study of aqueous methanol extracts of dried hyssop leaves showed (alpha)-glucosidase inhibitory activity.
• Phenolics / Rosmarinic Acid: Transformed roots induced by infection with Agrobacterium rhizogenes produced high levels of phenolic compounds such as rosmarinic acid and lithospermic acid. B.
Availability
Cultivated.
Wildcrafted.
Hyssop essential oil in the cybermarket.
Topics: Medicinal Plants (Halamang Gamot), Miscellaneous | No Comments »
