Astragalus

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Astragalus
Astragalus tragacantha ssp. vicentinus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Fabales Family: Fabaceae Subfamily: Faboideae Tribe: Galegeae Genus: Astragalus L.
Species
See text.

Astragalus (As-trá-ga-lus) is a large genus of about 2,000 species of herbs and small shrubs, belonging to the legume family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae. The genus is native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Common names include milk-vetch (most species) and goat's-thorn (A. gummifera, A. tragacanthus). Some pale-flowered vetches are similar in appearance, but vetches are more vine-like.

Contents 1 Host for insects 2 Medicinal use 3 Ornamental use 4 Selected species 5 External references

[edit] Host for insects

Astragalus species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the following case-bearers of the genus Coleophora: C. astragalella (feeds exclusively on A. glycyphyllos), C. cartilaginella (feeds exclusively on Astragalus), C. colutella, C. euryaula (feeds exclusively on Astragalus), C. gallipennella (feeds exclusively on A. glycyphyllos), C. hippodromica (feeds exclusively on A. gombo), C. onobrychiella (feeds exclusively on Astragalus), C. polonicella (feeds exclusively on A. arenarius) and C. vicinella.

[edit] Medicinal use

Main article: Astragalus propinquus#Possible_uses

Astragalus propinquus (also known as Astragalus membranaceus) has a history of use as an herbal medicine, and the biotechnology firms Geron Corporation and TA Sciences have been working on deriving a telomerase activator from it.

[edit] Ornamental use

Several species, including A. alpinus (bluish-purple flowers), A. hypoglottis (purple flowers) and A. lotoides, are grown as ornamental plants in gardens.

[edit] Selected species

(See external references)

Astragalus adsurgens - Standing milk-vetch Astragalus agrestis - Field milk vetch, Purple milk-vetch, Cock's-head Astragalus alopecuroides Astragalus alpinus - Alpine milk vetch Astragalus angustifolius Astragalus annularis Astragalus arenarius Astragalus aristatus Astragalus atropilosulus Astragalus azizi Astragalus baionensis Astragalus barrii - Barr's milk vetch Astragalus bibullatus - Limestone-glade milk-vetch Astragalus bisulcatus - Two-groove milk-vetch Astragalus boeticus Astragalus canadensis - Canadian milk-vetch Astragalus centralpinus Astragalus christianus Astragalus cicer - Wild Lentil, Chickpea milk-vetch Astragalus coccineus - Scarlet milk-vetch Astragalus crassicarpus (caryocarpus) - Ground-plum, Buffalo Plum Astragalus danicus Astragalus debequaeus - Debeque milk-vetch Astragalus depressus Astragalus echinus Astragalus eriocarpus Astragalus exscapus Astragalus frigidus - American milk-vetch, Arctic milk-vetch Astragalus galegiformis Astragalus gilviflorus - Plains milk-vetch, Plains orophaca Astragalus glycyphyllos - Wild Liquorice, Licorice milk-vetch

Astragalus gummifera Astragalus hypoglottis - Field milk-vetch, Purple milk-vetch, Cock's-head Astragalus illyricus Illirian milk-vetch Astragalus lemmonii - Lemmon's milk-vetch Astragalus lentiginosus - Freckled milk-vetch Astragalus leontinus Astragalus lusitanicus Astragalus lotoides Astragalus massiliensis Astragalus membranaceus - Used in SoBe Lizard Fuel Strawberry and Banana Astragalus missouriensis - Missouri milk-vetch Astragalus monspessulanus Astragalus naturitensis - Naturita milk-vetch Astragalus newberryi - Newberry's milk-vetch Astragalus norvegicus Astragalus nuttallii - Nuttall's milk-vetch Astragalus onobrychis Astragalus penduliflorus Astragalus propinquus (membranaceus) - Huang qi Astragalus purshii - Pursh's milk-vetch, Woolly-pod milk-vetch Astragalus sclerocarpus - Sicklepod milk-vetch Astragalus sempervirens Astragalus shinanensis Astragalus shiroumaensis Astragalus sirinicus Astragalus spatulatus - Tufted milk-vetch, Draba milk-vetch Astragalus tennesseensis - Tennessee milk vetch Astragalus trichopodus - Santa Barbara milk-vetch Astragalus tridactylus - Foothill milk-vetch Astragalus tragacanthus Astragalus vogelii

[edit] External references

• Astragalus
• Astralagus information
• Large list of species
• Very large list of species (with synonyms).
• Astragalus at a Glance This fact sheet from the U.S. National Institutes of Health provides basic information about astragalus--common names, uses, potential side effects, and resources for more information.