Artemisia californica

Not only animals but also plants are competing in the struggle for the best conditions of life, and they use chemical defense mechanisms, too. Some plants are able to set free germicides directly from the roots. Another mechanism is to exsude from the surface of the leaves such substances which come into the earth by the rain (5). Typical examples are Salvia leucophylla and Artemisia californica. These shrubs suppress the growth of any plants within a radius of 1 meter completely, by excretion of 1.8-cineol and campher these substances... 

Monoterpenes 1,8-Cineole, camphor and other monoterpenes (D 6.1) Released from leaves of the sagebrush. Salvia leucophylla and of Artemisia californica and absorbed in the soil, inhibiting germination of the seeds of annual plants... 

Halligan, J.P. (1975) Toxic terpenes from Artemisia californica. Ecology 56, 999-1003... 

Halligan, J.P. 1973. Bare areas associated with shrub stands in grassland the case of Artemisia californica. Bioscience 23 429-432. 

Halligan, J.P. 1976. Toxicity of Artemisia californica to four associated herb species. Am. Midi. Natur. 95 406-421. 

Wormwood oil Artemisia absinthium L.), sage oil Salvia officinalis L.) and milfoil oil Achillea millefolium L.) contain the diastereoisomeric thujones (113) as their main components (792). The biogenesis of these ketones was investigated in certain Thuja, Tanacetum and Juni-perus species (25). (-)-Isothujone cis-113) possesses an antinociceptive activity which is comparable with that of ( —)-A -tetrahydrocannabinol and codeine 498). The acute toxicity of California bay oil Umbellularia californica Nutt.) is due primarily to umbellulone (114) (39%), a substance, which is not present in Mediterranean or West Indian oils 67, 369). A similar neuropharmacological effect is reported for ( —)-thujone trans-113) 208). 

Five major terpenes were identified in the leaves of A. californica 1,8-cineole, artemisia ketone, a-thujone, isothujone, and camphor. Minor amounts of P-pinene,... 

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