Fumitory

Description

Fumaria bastardii, commonly, tall ramping fumitory or bastard's fumitory, is a tall (to 2 m.), many-branched herbaceous flowering plant native to Western Europe including the British Isles and the northern Mediterranean. The species is a weed of arable and disturbed ground, and occurs as an introduced alien in many areas of the world with suitable climates, including Southwest Australia and North America. Fumaria (fumitory or fumewort, from Latin fumus terrae, "smoke of the earth") is a genus of about 60 species of annual flowering plants in the family Papaveraceae. The genus is native to Europe, Africa and Asia, most diverse in the Mediterranean region, and introduced to North, South America and Australia. Fumaria species are sometimes used in herbal medicine. Fumaria indica contains the alkaloids fuyuziphine and alpha-hydrastine.Fumaria indica may have anti-inflammatory and analgesic potential.