annual plant
An annual plant is a plant that completes its life cycle, from germination to the production of seeds, within one growing season, and then dies. Globally, 6% of all plant species and 15% of herbaceous plants (excluding trees and shrubs) are ...
s in the family
Asteraceae
Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...
, with a pantropical distribution and in some areas of Asia and South America also into temperate regions. St Paul's-wort or St. Paul's wort is a common name for some of the species. ''Sigesbeckia'' is widely distributed and has been traditionally used for the management of chronic diseases, including arthritis.
Origin
''Sigesbeckia'' is named after the German botanist Johann Georg Siegesbeck ( de), who was a strong critic of
Carl Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...
's botanical classification system. Siegesbeck had referred to it as "loathsome harlotry" because of the focus of the system upon the presence (or absence) of sex organs in plants, and their locations and groupings. Siegesbeck tried to refute Linnaeus' sexual classification system, but was unable to provide sound scholastic arguments to support his arguments. Linnaeus proposed in ''
Critica Botanica
''Critica Botanica'' ("Critique of botany", Leiden, July 1737) was written by Swedish botanist, physician, zoologist and naturalist Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778). The book was published in Germany when Linnaeus was 29 with a discursus by the botani ...
'' that there should be a link between the plant and the botanist after whom it was named. Considering the feud between Siegesbeck and Linnaeus, it is not unsurprising that in the classification book ''
Hortus Cliffortianus
The ''Hortus Cliffortianus'' is a work of early botanical literature published in 1737.
The work was a collaboration between Carl Linnaeus and the illustrator Georg Dionysius Ehret, financed by George Clifford in 1735–1736. Clifford was a we ...
'', Linnaeus named a pungent weed ''Sigesbeckia''.
Classification
''Sigesbeckia'' is related to a group of South American plants variously known as subtribe Espeletiinae or the ''
Espeletia
''Espeletia'', commonly known as 'frailejones' ("big monks"), is a genus of perennial subshrubs, in the family Asteraceae. The genus, which is native mainly to Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador, was first formally described in 1808. The genus was n ...
'' complex, which include genera such as ''
Axiniphyllum
''Axiniphyllum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae.
; Species
All the species are endemic to Mexico.
* '' Axiniphyllum corymbosum'' Benth. – Oaxaca
* '' Axiniphyllum durangense'' B.L.Turner – Durango
* '' Axiniphyllum ...
'', ''
Espeletia
''Espeletia'', commonly known as 'frailejones' ("big monks"), is a genus of perennial subshrubs, in the family Asteraceae. The genus, which is native mainly to Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador, was first formally described in 1808. The genus was n ...
Smallanthus
''Smallanthus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the tribe Millerieae within the family Asteraceae.
Taxonomy
The following species are currently recognized:
*'' Smallanthus apus'' – Mexico
*'' Smallanthus cocuyensis'' – Colombia
*'' Small ...
'', ''
Rumfordia
''Rumfordia'' is a genus of Mesoamerican plants in the tribe Millerieae within the family Asteraceae.
; SpeciesTrigonospermum'', and '' Unxia''.
Some African ''Sigesbeckia'' species were transferred, at least by some authors, to ''
Guizotia
''Guizotia'' is a genus of African herbs in the family Asteraceae
Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Astera ...
''.
; Species
The number of species accepted varies between different authorities.
The
Global Compositae Checklist
Global may refer to:
General
*Globe, a spherical model of celestial bodies
*Earth, the third planet from the Sun
Entertainment
* ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003
* ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007
* ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 198 ...
Plants of the World Online
Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
History
Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...
(POWO) accepts the following 11 species:
Traditional medicine
Three species of ''Sigesbeckia'' are used in traditional medicine, ''Sigesbeckia orientalis'', ''Sigesbeckia pubescens'', and ''Sigesbeckia glabracens'', although the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, only accepts two of these species, with ''Sigesbeckia pubescens'' considered a subspecies of ''Sigesbeckia orientalis''. In traditional medicine, the aerial parts of the plant are used to treat rheumatic conditions such as arthritis, joint pain, muscle pain, sciatica. It is also used to treat hypertension. Use of ''Sigesbeckia'' as a traditional medicine dates back to at least 659 AD, when it was first referenced in Chinese materia medica. The traditional Chinese medicine is called ''xi xian cao'', and is used to "dispel wind-dampness, to strengthen sinews, and for wind-heat-damp pain obstructions".