Italian everlasting flower
| Italian everlasting flower | ||||||||||||
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Italian everlasting flower ( Helichrysum italicum ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Helichrysum italicum | ||||||||||||
| ( Roth ) G.Don |
The Italian immortelle , also known as Italian immortelle or curry herb ( Helichrysum italicum ) is a species of plant in the sunflower family (Asteraceae). It is native to the Mediterranean area , but is also used as a spice plant.
description
The Italian straw flower grows as a subshrub and reaches heights of 20 to 60 centimeters. Young parts of the plant have grayish-white tomentose hairs. The alternately arranged leaves are sitting. The leaf blade is narrowly linear with a rolled edge. The upper side of the leaf is initially thinly tomentose and later bald. The leaves smell of curry, especially after rain .
The cup-shaped partial inflorescences sit in a dense, corymbic overall inflorescence. These flower heads contain only tubular flowers. The cup shell is golden yellow and narrow, bell-shaped, longer than it is wide. The bracts are like roof tiles in several rows, the outer ones are egg-shaped, the inner ones are linear. The tubular flowers are yellow.
The flowering period extends from May to August.
The number of chromosomes is 2n = 28.
Occurrence
The Italian immortelle occurs in southern Europe, the Maghreb , the East Aegean Islands and Cyprus . It lives in garigues and fields.
Systematics
This species was first described in 1790 by Albrecht Wilhelm Roth under the name ( Basionym ) Gnaphalium italicum . George Don junior introduced it in 1830 as Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G.Don in the genus Helichrysum .
There are six subspecies of the species Helichrysum italicum :
- Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don subsp. italicum : In this subspecies, the envelope is 2-3 millimeters wide and the outer bracts are glandless. It is widespread in the entire range of the species, but is absent on the Iberian Peninsula , the Balearic Islands , Sicily and Crete .
- Helichrysum italicum subsp. microphyllum (Willd.) Nyman (Syn. Helichrysum microphyllum Willd. ): In this subspecies, the envelope is only 2 millimeters wide and the outer bracts have glands. The leaves are only up to 1 centimeter long, they are wavy on the edge and close to the stem. It occurs in Mallorca , Corsica , Sardinia , Greece and Crete.
- Helichrysum italicum subsp. picardii (Boiss. & Reut.) Franco : It occurs on the Iberian Peninsula and in Morocco .
- Helichrysum italicum subsp. pseudolitoreum (Fiori) Bacch., Brullo & Mossa : It occurs only on the coast of Tuscany , on the Tuscan Archipelago and in Sardinia .
- Helichrysum italicum subsp. serotinum (Boiss.) P. Fourn. (Syn .: Helichrysum serotinum Boiss. ): In this subspecies, the outer bracts are glandless and the envelope is 3–4 millimeters wide. It occurs in southern France , on the Iberian Peninsula, the Pityuses and in Algeria .
- Helichrysum italicum subsp. siculum (Jord. & Fourr.) Galbany, L.Sáez & Benedí : It occurs on the Apennine peninsula, in Sicily and in Tunisia .
use
The strong scent of the flowers is reminiscent of curry, it is particularly intense in hot weather. The young leaves and shoots are suitable for seasoning rice, sauces and meat dishes, as well as fish and fillings. The twigs are briefly cooked and removed before serving. Dried inflorescences and shoots are used in floristry . The Italian everlasting flower is suitable for topiary and low hedges.
The essential oil has anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. The oil can be obtained by distillation (hydrodistillation). The chemical composition is complex and contains various carboxylic acids and at least 27 esters. The ingredients determined in chemical analyzes vary greatly depending on the area of origin (North America, Italy, Greece), the maximum values are given in each case: The chemical analysis of a second source is given in brackets:
- 14 to 54% nerylacetate (10.4%)
- 2 to 34% α-pinene (12.8%)
- 0 to 16% γ-curcumen
- 0 to 17% β-selinene
- 0 to 36% geraniol
- 0 to 12% (E) -Nerolidol
- 0 to 11% β-caryophyllene
- 9 to 25% linalool
- 6 to 15% limes
- 2-methyl-cyclohexylpentanoate (11.1%)
- 1,7-di-epi-α-cedrene (6.8%)
swell
literature
- Ingrid Schönfelder, Peter Schönfelder : The cosmos Mediterranean flora. Over 500 Mediterranean plants in color photos (= Kosmos nature guide ). 2nd Edition. Franckh, Stuttgart 1990, ISBN 3-440-05300-8 , p. 208 .
- Avril Rodway: Herbs and Spices. The most useful plants in nature - culture and use. Tessloff, Hamburg 1980, ISBN 3-7886-9910-8 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Helichrysum italicum at Tropicos.org. In: IPCN Chromosome Reports . Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis
- ↑ a b Werner Greuter: Compositae (pro parte majore):Helichrysum italicum.. In: Werner Greuter, Eckhard von Raab-Straube (ed.): Compositae. Euro + Med Plantbase - the information resource for Euro-Mediterranean plant diversity. Berlin, 2006–2009.
- ^ Albrecht Wilhelm Roth: Observationes Plantarum. In: Johann Jakob Römer, Paulus Usteri (Hrsg.): Magazine for botany. Volume 4, No. 10, p. 19, digitized .
- ↑ George Don Jr. In: JC Loudon: Hortus Britannicus: a catalog of all the plants indigenous, cultivated in, or introduced to Britain. Part I. The Linnaean arrangement: Syngenesia Superflua. Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown and Green, London 1830, p. 342, digitized .
- ^ Helichrysum italicum in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
- ^ Mercè Galbany-Casals, Llorenç Sáez, Carles Benedí i González: A taxonomic revision of Helichrysum Mill. Sect. Stoechadina (DC.) Gren. & Godr. (Asteraceae, Gnaphalieae). In: Canadian Journal of Botany. Volume 84, No. 8, 2006, pp. 1203-1232, doi: 10.1139 / b06-082 .
- ↑ a b c Peter Schönfelder , Ingrid Schönfelder: The new cosmos Mediterranean flora. Franckh Kosmos Verlag Stuttgart 2008. ISBN 978-3-440-10742-3 . P. 112.
- ↑ Gianluigi Bacchetta, Salvatore Brullo; Luigi Mossa: Note tassonomiche sul genere Helichrysum Miller (Asteraceae) in Sardegna. In: Informatore Botanico Italiano. Volume 35, No. 1, 2003, pp. 217-225, PDF file.
- ↑ Karin Greiner, Angelika Weber: Herbs. Gräfer and Unzer, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-8338-0046-1 , p. 129.
- ↑ a b Josip Mastelić, Olivera Politeo, Igor Jerković: Contribution to the Analysis of the Essential Oil of Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don. - Determination of Ester Bonded Acids and Phenols. In: Molecules . Volume 13, 2008, pp. 795-803, doi: 10.3390 / molecules13040795 .
- ^ Arthur O. Tucker, Thomas DeBaggio, Francesco DeBaggio: The Encyclopedia of Herbs: A Comprehensive Reference to Herbs of Flavor and Fragrance. Timber Press, Portland 2009, ISBN 978-0-88192-994-2 , p. 252.
