Coltsfoot

Coltsfoot

Taxobox
name = Coltsfoot


image_width = 250px
regnum = Plantae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis = Magnoliopsida
ordo = Asterales
familia = Asteraceae
genus = "Tussilago"
species = "T. farfara"
binomial = "Tussilago farfara"
binomial_authority = L.

Coltsfoot ("Tussilago farfara") is a plant in the family Asteraceae.

It has been used medicinally as a cough suppressant. The name "tussilago" itself means "cough suppressant." The plant has been used since at least historical times to treat lung ailments such as asthma as well as various coughs by way of smoking. Crushed flowers supposedly cured skin conditions, and the plant has been consumed as a food item.

Coltsfoot is a perennial herbaceous plant that spreads by seeds and rhizomes. "Tussilago" is often found in colonies of dozens of plants. The flowers, which superficially resemble dandelions, appear in early spring before dandelions appear. The leaves, which resemble a colt's foot in cross section, do not appear usually until after the seeds are set. Thus, the flowers appear on stems with no apparent leaves, and the later appearing leaves then wither and die during the season without seeming to set flowers.

The plant is typically between 10 - 30cm in height.

Coltsfoot is native to several locations in Europe and Asia. It is also a common plant in North America and South America where it has been introduced, most likely by settlers as a medicinal item. The plant is often found in waste and disturbed places and along roadsides and paths. In some areas it is considered an invasive species.

Coltsfoot is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including The Gothic and Small Angle Shades. The Coltsfoot is also worked by the honey bee ("Apis mellifera mellifera").

Other common names include Ass's foot, Bull's foot, Butterbur, Coughwort, Farfara, Foal's foot, Foalswort, Horse Foot and Winter heliotrope.

Sometimes it is confused as Western coltsfoot.

Dried coltsfoot is often used as a tobacco alternative, notably in Amsterdam, since the legal status of tobacco was tightened in August 2008.

External links

* [http://www.invasive.org/browse/subject.cfm?sub=6564 Coltsfoot information]
* [http://fxcuisine.com/default.asp?Display=74 Coltsfoot Flowers Sorbet]

References


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Coltsfoot — Colts foot , n. (Bot.) A perennial herb ({Tussilago Farfara}), whose leaves and rootstock are sometimes employed in medicine. [1913 Webster] {Butterbur coltsfoot} (Bot.), a European plant ({Petasites vulgaris}). [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • coltsfoot — ► NOUN ▪ a plant with yellow flowers and large heart shaped leaves …   English terms dictionary

  • coltsfoot — [kōlts′foot΄] n. pl. coltsfoots a plant (Tussilago farfara) of the composite family, with heads of small, yellow flowers and large leaves whose shape suggests a colt s footprint …   English World dictionary

  • coltsfoot — ankstyvasis šalpusnis statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Astrinių šeimos prieskoninis, vaistinis nuodingas augalas (Tussilago farfara), paplitęs šiaurės Afrikoje, Europoje ir Azijoje. Iš jo gaminami maisto priedai (kvėpikliai). atitikmenys:… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Coltsfoot Rock — is a confectionery product created from Coltsfoot extract by the UK confectioners Stockley s Sweets, based in Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, England. As a product, it is a hardened stick of brittle rock candy flavoured with Coltsfoot, a plant with… …   Wikipedia

  • Coltsfoot Green — is a small hamlet within the village of Wickhambrook, Suffolk, England. It constitutes one of its eleven village greens and consists of a small green with a small tributary of the River Glem running through it. Until 2009 there was a small copse… …   Wikipedia

  • coltsfoot snakeroot — noun see coltsfoot * * * coltsfoot snakeroot, = wild ginger. (Cf. ↑wild ginger) …   Useful english dictionary

  • coltsfoot — noun (plural coltsfoots) Date: 14th century any of various plants with large rounded leaves resembling the foot of a colt; especially a perennial composite herb (Tussilago farfara) with yellow flower heads appearing before the leaves …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • coltsfoot — /kohlts foot /, n., pl. coltsfoots. a composite plant, Tussilago farfara, having yellow, daisylike flowers, native to the Old World but widespread as a weed, formerly used as a cough remedy. [1545 55; COLT + S1 + FOOT, so called from the shape of …   Universalium

  • coltsfoot — noun An herbaceous plant in the family Compositae, species Tussilago farfara, that grows in Europe and the Middle East …   Wiktionary

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