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Japanese Mugwort🌿
Artemisia indica var. maximowiczii
ヨモギ
A perennial herb found throughout Japan in grasslands and along roadsides. Young spring shoots are used to make kusa-mochi (mugwort rice cakes). The undersides of leaves are covered in white woolly hairs, and the plant has a distinctive aroma. Also known as the source material for moxa (used in moxibustion).
Identification Points
- ✓Undersides of leaves are whitish, covered with white woolly hairs
- ✓Distinctive aromatic fragrance
- ✓Leaves deeply pinnately lobed
- ✓Small brownish flower spikes appear in autumn
Habitat
Roadsides, grasslands, riverbanks, embankments
Season
September to October (flowers)
Morphological TraitsAI-estimated, needs verification
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Serrate
Leaf shape
Ovate
Growth form
Herb
Petal count
5 petals
Petal fusion
Fused
Habitat
Roadside
Ovary position
Inferior
Stamen count
1-2
Phylogenetic Positionキク科 →
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core eudicots > Asterales > Asteraceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene (approx. 80–70 million years ago)
Sources & References
AI-generated, needs verification