File:Gardenology.org-IMG_2751_rbgs11jan.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
OverviewAI-generated
*Mentha pulegium*, commonly known as pennyroyal, is a species within the genus *Mentha*. It belongs to the family Lamiaceae, order Lamiales, class Magnoliopsida, phylum Tracheophyta, and kingdom Plantae. The species produces a fruit type classified as a nucule. Its IUCN conservation status is listed as Least Concern, a designation recorded in 2014.
The taxon range includes China, while the Encyclopedia of Life describes its presence in Chile Central. According to Plants of the World, the plant is native to Albania, Algeria, Austria, the Azores, Baleares, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Corse, and Cyprus. Additional records indicate occurrences in the United States, Mexico, and Germany.
Synthesized by Vinony from 38 facts across 9 sources: Wikidata, GBIF, PubMed, Gbif Occ, IUCN Red List, Encyclopedia of Life, Plants of the World, iDigBio, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Species
Least ConcernMentha pulegium
SPECIES
- KingdomPlantae
- PhylumTracheophyta
- ClassMagnoliopsida
- OrderLamiales
- FamilyLamiaceae
Chile Central
via GBIF · IUCN · Kew POWO
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 3,036
- With media
- 2,152
- Family
- Lamiaceae
- Collections
- UTEP, ECOSUR, MEL, CICY, UJAT, CHSC
- Recorded in
- United States, Mexico, Germany
Research
215 papers- Mentha Pulegium: A Plant with Several Medicinal Properties.ReviewEndocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets · 2024Amtaghri S, Slaoui M, Eddouks MDOI: 10.2174/1871530323666230914103731
- Mentha pulegium L. and Salvia officinalis L. Bioactive Compounds: Focus on Their Application in Agriculture and Food Packaging.ReviewChemistry & biodiversity · 2025Khodja NK, Brahmi F, Zebiri F et al.DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.202402574
- Pennyroyal Oil.Review2012
- Mentha pulegium Aqueous Extract Exhibits Antidiabetic and Hepatoprotective Effects in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats.Endocrine, metabolic & immune disorders drug targets · 2019Farid O, Zeggwagh NA, Ouadi FE et al.DOI: 10.2174/1871530318666181005102247
- Tunisian Native Mentha pulegium L. Extracts: Phytochemical Composition and Biological Activities.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Jebali J, Ghazghazi H, Aouadhi C et al.DOI: 10.3390/molecules27010314
- Anti-inflammatory effects of Mentha pulegium L. extract on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells are mediated by TLR-4 and NF-κB suppression.Heliyon · 2024Mohammadi F, Rahimi K, Ahmadi A et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24040
- Chemical Composition of Mentha pulegium and its Contributions to Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, and Insecticidal Activities: Insights from In Vitro and Molecular Docking Studies.ACS omega · 2025Amara N, Amar MK, Touzout N et al.DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.5c04188
- Mentha pulegium L. (Pennyroyal, Lamiaceae) Extracts Impose Abortion or Fetal-Mediated Toxicity in Pregnant Rats; Evidenced by the Modulation of Pregnancy Hormones, MiR-520, MiR-146a, TIMP-1 and MMP-9 Protein Expressions, Inflammatory State, Certain Related Signaling Pathways, and Metabolite Profiling via UPLC-ESI-TOF-MS.Toxins · 2022El-Gazar AA, Emad AM, Ragab GM et al.DOI: 10.3390/toxins14050347
via PubMed
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Mentha
- Image
- COI00102998 - Mentha pulegium forma alba - Rainha, Bento Victoria - 6207.jpg
Show 10 more facts
- taxon name
- Mentha pulegium
- taxon rank
- species
- Commons category
- Mentha pulegium
- IUCN conservation status
- Least Concern
- taxon common name
- menta polexu
- Commons gallery
- Mentha pulegium
- has fruit type
- nucule
- taxon range
- China
- short name
- M. pulegium
Sources (3)
via Wikidata · CC0
~13 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Mentha pulegium, commonly (European) pennyroyal, or pennyrile, also called mosquito plant and pudding grass, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae, native to Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. Crushed pennyroyal leaves emit a very strong fragrance similar to spearmint. Pennyroyal is a traditional folk remedy, emmenagogue, abortifacient, and culinary herb, but is toxic to the liver and has caused some deaths. European pennyroyal is related to an American species, Hedeoma pulegioides. Though they differ in genera, they share similar chemical properties.
Description
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Mentha pulegium” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.