Lallemantia iberica

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Lamiids
Ordo: Lamiales

Familia: Lamiaceae
Subfamilia: Nepetoideae
Tribus: Mentheae
Subtribus: Nepetinae
Genus: Lallemantia
Species: Lallemantia iberica
Name

Lallemantia iberica (M.Bieb.) Fisch. & C.A.Mey., 1840
Synonyms

Basionym
Dracocephalum ibericum M.Bieb., Fl. Taur.-Caucas. 2: 54 (1808).
Heterotypic
Dracocephalum aristatum Bertol., Novi Comment. Acad. Sci. Inst. Bononiensis 6: 225 (1844).
Lallemantia sulphurea K.Koch, Linnaea 21: 679 (1849).
Lallemantia kopetdaghensis Boriss., Bot. Mater. Gerb. Bot. Inst. Komarova Akad. Nauk S.S.S.R. 17: 274 (1954).

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Asia-Temperate
Regional: Western Asia
Iran, Iraq, Lebanon-Syria, Turkey, Turkmenistan
Regional: Caucasus
North Caucasus, Transcaucasus
Regional: Arabian Peninsula
Palestine

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References
Primary references

Fischer, F.E.L. & Meyer, C.A.v. 1840 "1839". Index Seminum (St.Petersburg (Petropolitanus)) 6. Hortus, St. Petersburg. BHL Reference page.

Additional references

Delipavlov, D. & Cheshmedzhiev, I. (eds.) (2011). Opredelitel na rasteniiata v Bulgariia: 1-590. Akad. Isd. Agrar. Univers. Plovdiv.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2022. Lallemantia iberica in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2022 May 04. Reference page.
Hassler, M. 2022. Lallemantia iberica. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2022. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: 2022 May 04. Reference page.
Tropicos.org 2022. Lallemantia iberica. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 04 May 2022.
International Plant Names Index. 2022. Lallemantia iberica. Published online. Accessed: May 04 2022.
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Lallemantia iberica in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 07-Oct-06.

Vernacular names
suomi: Espanjankormikki

Lallemantia iberica, known commonly as dragon's head, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae.

The plant has been cultivated for its seeds in southwestern Asia and southeastern Europe since prehistoric times.[1] Its vernacular name in Iran is balangu shahri.[2] The seeds contain the edible oil known as lallemantia oil.[3] The oil content of the seeds is about 30%, sometimes reaching up to 38%. The oil is used as a substitute for linseed oil in the production of varnish, furniture polish, ink, paint, soap, and linoleum.[1]

Lallemantia iberica is famous for use in traditional medicines. This plant, originally from the Caucasus and the Middle East, spread throughout European and eastern countries.[4]

The seeds have been used in folk medicine as a stimulant and diuretic.[1] The leaves are used as a potherb in modern Iran.[5]

This plant is an annual herb growing to an average height around 40 cm (16 in). The toothed or serrated leaves are in opposite pairs at the stem nodes. Inflorescences emerge from the leaf axils and bear white, lipped flowers each about 1 cm (0.4 in) long. They are pollinated by insects.[1]

This species can escape cultivation and become a weed.[1]

Balanguseed mucilage (BSM) features many advantages over most of its polymer counterparts, including a lower production cost, higher efficiency, and better medicinal properties.[4]
References

Ion, V.; Băşa, A.Gh.; Săndoiu, D.I.; Obrişcă, Mihaela (2011). "Results regarding biological characteristics of the species Lallemantia iberica in the specific conditions from South Romania" (PDF). UASVM Bucharest, Series A. 54: 275–80.
Naghibi, Farzaneh; Mosaddegh, Mahmoud; Mohammadi Motamed, Saeed; Ghorbani, Abdolbaset (2005). "Labiatae Family in folk Medicine in Iran: from Ethnobotany to Pharmacology". Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research. 4 (2): 63–79. doi:10.22037/ijpr.2010.619.
Megaloudi, F. (2006). Plants and Diet in Greece from Neolithic to Classic Periods: the archaeobotanical remains. Oxford: Archaeopress. ISBN 1-84171-949-8.[page needed]
Sadeghi-Varkani, Atina; Emam-Djomeh, Zahra; Askari, Gholamreza (2017). "Physicochemical and microstructural properties of a novel edible film synthesized from Balangu seed mucilage". International Journal of Biological Macromolecules. 108: 1110–1119. doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2017.11.029. PMID 29126944.
Uphof, J. C. Th. (1968). Dictionary of Economic Plants. Lehre: Cramer.