Clinopodium
| Clinopodium | |
|---|---|
| Clinopodium vulgare | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Lamiaceae |
| Subfamily: | Nepetoideae |
| Tribe: | Mentheae |
| Genus: | Clinopodium L. |
| Type species | |
| Clinopodium vulgare | |
| Species | |
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See text | |
| Synonyms | |
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Clinopodium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae, in the subtribe Menthinae. Clinopodium belongs to a large and complex group of genera including many New World mints such as Hedeoma, Monarda, and Pycnanthemum, and this group is in turn a sister clade to Mentha. The genus name Clinopodium is derived from the Latin clinopodion, from the Ancient Greek κλινοπόδιον (klinopódion), from κλίνη (klínē) "bed" and πόδιον (pódion) "little foot". These were names for Clinopodium vulgare. They allude to the form of the calyx.
Clinopodium species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Coleophora albitarsella.
Various Clinopodium species are used as medicinal herbs. For example, C. macrostemum is used in Mexico as a tea under the name poleo or yerba de borracho to cure hangovers, stomach aches, and liver disease.