Artemisia absinthium
Artemisia pontica
absinth wormwood, absinthe, absinthe wormwood, absinthium, armoise absinthe, common wormwood, green ginger, oldman, oldman wormwood, wormwood
armoise de la mer noire, green-ginger, roman wormwood
gray-green (sometimes woody proximally), densely canescent to glabrescent (hairs appressed).
relatively numerous, erect, brown, mostly simple (brittle, bases woody) canescent or glabrate.
deciduous, gray-green;
blades broadly ovate, 3–8 × 1–4 cm, mostly pinnately lobed (basal 2–3-pinnatifid, lobes obovate), faces densely canescent.
cauline, grayish green;
sessile (proximalmost short-petiolate);
blades triangular to ovate, 1–5 × 1–3 cm, 2–3-pinnatifid (lobes 0.5–1 mm wide, acute), faces pubescent (abaxial) or hairy to glabrate (adaxial).
broadly ovoid, 2–3 × 3–5 mm.
spheric, 1.5–2(–3) mm.
pistillate 9–20;
bisexual 30–50;
corollas 1–2 mm, glandular.
pistillate 10–12;
bisexual 40–45;
corollas pale yellow, 0.2–0.3 mm, sometimes gland-dotted (stigma lobes relatively short, not emerging from tubes, short-ciliate).
gray-green, densely sericeous.
(subequal) linear, hairy.
(nodding) in open (diffusely branched), paniculiform arrays 10–20(–35) × (2–)10–13(–15) cm.
(nodding) in paniculiform arrays 10–22 × 2–4 cm.
(± cylindric, slightly curved, obscurely nerved), ± 0.5 mm, glabrous (shiny).
ellipsoid (angled), 0.1–0.2 mm, glabrous.
= 18.
= 18.
Artemisia absinthium
Artemisia pontica
Artemisia absinthium provides the flavoring as well as the psychoactive ingredient for absinthe liquor, a beverage that is illegal in some markets. Known as a powerful neurotoxin, absinthe in large quantities is addictive as well as deadly. The species is popular in the horticultural trade. Prized by gardeners for its gracefully scalloped leaves and gray-green foliage, it creates an attractive and winter-hardy flower border.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Artemisia pontica has finely dissected gray foliage and is widely planted as an ornamental. It escapes locally; it has not been reported as problematic. The only species with which it has been confused in North America is A. abrotanum, which has dark green (not gray) foliage.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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BC, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites:
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PNW Herbaria, Turner Photog. 
WildflowerSearch
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