hairy agrimony

Names and Synonyms

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Agrimonia eupatoria var. pilosa
• Agrimonia dahurica var. pilosa

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae and is classified under the phylum Streptophyta and class Equisetopsida. Within the subclass Magnoliidae, it falls under the order Rosales and the family Rosaecae. Ultimately, it is identified by its specific genus, Agrimonia.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a broad geographical presence across several distinct regions of the European continent. In Northern Europe, its habitat includes the country of Finland. Moving into Middle Europe, the species can be found growing within Poland. Its distribution extends further into Eastern Europe, specifically documented in Belarus. Finally, the plant is present in Southeastern Europe, occupying areas in both Romania and the Northwestern Balkan Peninsula.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Agrimonia pilosa is characterized by a broad adaptive capacity across diverse terrestrial environments, ranging from disturbed sites like burn clearings, cut-over forests, and roadsides to more stable natural landscapes such as forests, forest edges, shrubberies, meadows, and areas proximal to rivers and lakes. This species demonstrates a significant altitudinal plasticity, inhabiting a vast vertical gradient that begins at sea level and extends to high-altitude environments. Specifically, its elevational range spans from a minimum of 100 m AMSL to a maximum of 3800 m AMSL, maintaining an average elevation of approximately 1950 m AMSL.

Elevational range max:

3800 m AMSL

Elevational range mean:

1950 m AMSL

Elevational range min:

100 m AMSL

Habitat :

burn clearings, cut-over forest, forest, forest edges, lakes, meadows, rivers, roadsides, shrubberies

Life history

The life history of Agrimonia pilosa is characterized by its status as a perennial species, allowing the plant to persist through multiple growing seasons. As a perennial, it avoids the complete die-off seen in annuals, instead focusing its energy on establishing robust root systems and vegetative structures that support long-term survival. This lifecycle enables the plant to undergo repeated cycles of growth, flowering, and seed production, often adapting its reproductive efforts based on seasonal availability of resources. This enduring biological strategy ensures that the plant can re-emerge and stabilize its presence within its ecological niche over several years.

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Agriemonia pilosa is characterized by a growth form categorized as a herb, specifically functioning as a non-woody forb. This plant exhibits a self-supporting habit, rather than acting as a liana or vine, and maintains a relatively small stature with a plant height ranging from a minimum of 0.2 m to a maximum of 1 m. In terms of its ecological positioning and habitat, it is described as terrestrial rather than an epiphyte, and while it exists within a spectrum of moisture availability, its primary classification is terrestrial. Furthermore, the plant is an independent organism, meaning it does not function as an obligatory or facultative parasite.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

herb

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

1 m

Plant height min:

0.2 m

Woodiness :

non-woody

Physiology

The physiology of Agrimonia pilosa is characterized by a C3 photosynthetic pathway, indicating a carbon fixation process optimized for moderate environments rather than the specialized adaptations found in C4 or CAM plants. Its vegetative architecture features rhomboid-shaped leaves that exhibit a toothed margin, lacking both thorns and spines. The dimensions of these leaves vary significantly, with a minimum length of 1.5 cm and a maximum length reaching up to 5 cm, resulting in an average leaf length of 3.25 cm. Similarly, the leaf width fluctuates between a minimum of 1 cm and a maximum of 2.5 cm, maintaining a mean width of 1.75 cm.

Leaf form :

rhomboid

Leaf length max:

5 cm

Leaf length mean:

3.25 cm

Leaf length min:

1.5 cm

Leaf margin :

toothed

Leaf spines :

no

Leaf thorns :

no

Leaf width max:

2.5 cm

Leaf width mean:

1.75 cm

Leaf width min:

1 cm

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Reproduction

The reproduction of Agriemonia pilosa is characterized by a bisexual sexual reproduction system. The flowering period typically begins in June and concludes in August, though the timing can be variable. Following pollination, the plant produces fruits that exhibit specific morphological dimensions, with a mean length of 0.75 cm (ranging from a minimum of 0.7 cm to a maximum of 0.8 cm) and a mean width of 0.35 cm (ranging from a minimum of 0.3 cm to a maximum of 0.4 cm). The dispersal of these fruits follows a zoochorous syndrome, indicating that they rely on animals for distribution.

Dispersal syndrome :

zoochorous

Flowering time :

Jun

Flowering time :

Aug

Fruit length max:

0.8 cm

Fruit length mean:

0.75 cm

Fruit length min:

0.7 cm

Fruit width max:

0.4 cm

Fruit width mean:

0.35 cm

Fruit width min:

0.3 cm

Reproduction sexual :

bisexual

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Plant Parts

Agrimonia pilosa has 2 reported plant parts identified across 4 scientific publications and several other databases that are studied for medicinal purposes. The most consistently reported plant part include root, leaf.

Root

1. Japanese journal of pharmacology
2. Scientific reports
3. The American journal of Chinese medicine

Leaf

1. Functional plant biology : FPB

Chemicals

Agrimonia pilosa has 30 reported phytochemicals identified across 4 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include Agrimoniin, Flavonoids, 3-Methoxy quercetin, Agrimonolide, Bioflavonoid.

Agrimoniin

1. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
2. Pharmaceutics

Flavonoids

1. Natural product research
2. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

3-Methoxy quercetin

1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Agrimonolide

1. Yao xue xue bao = Acta pharmaceutica Sinica

Bioflavonoid

1. Toxicological research

CALCIUM OXALATE

1. Guang pu xue yu guang pu fen xi = Guang pu

CATECHIN

1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Ellagic acid-4-O-beta-D-xylopyranoside

1. Yao xue xue bao = Acta pharmaceutica Sinica

Hydrolyzable Tannins

1. Functional plant biology : FPB

Hyperoside

1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Activities

Agrimonia pilosa has 5 reported activities identified across 4 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported activities include Antibacterial, Anticancer, Antioxidant, Free-Radical Scavenging, Neuroprotective.

Antibacterial

1. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland)

Anticancer

1. Pharmaceutics

Antioxidant

1. Pharmaceutics

Free-Radical Scavenging

1. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)

Neuroprotective

1. Combinatorial chemistry & high throughput screening

Medicinal Uses

Agrimonia pilosa has 26 reported medicinal uses identified across 4 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported uses include abdominal pain, DNA Oxidative Damage, Escherichia coli, H1N1, Inflammation.

Most Reported Uses

Preparations