Herbs Past

Tansy

Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) is a perennial herb. It is a member of the aster family (Asteraceae), and it is native to temperate Europe and Asia. It is hardy in USDA zones 4-9. Tansy flowers and leafy shoots can be used to dye fabric yellow or green.

It was frequently used as a strewing herb, and is said to repel flies. In some parts of Europe, particularly in England, young tansy leaves were used to make puddings, cakes, or omelets (a “tansy”) that was traditionally eaten on Easter day.

In traditional medicine tansy is anthelminic, tonic, stimulant, and emmenagogue. Caution: No one should self-medicate with tansy. Significant doses are toxic.

When he issued the Capitulare de Villis in about 800 A.D., the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne required that tansy (tanazitum in Carolingian Latin) be grown on all his imperial estates. In the Victorian language of flowers tansy represents “I declare war against you.”

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