Lemon verbena
Herb Louisa, lemon-scented verbena, French verveine citronelle or odorante; Lippia citriodora Kunth; Verbena triphylla L’Hér.; Aloysia triphylla (L’Hér.) Kuntze; Aloysia citrodora Paláu; in pharmacy Verbenae citriodorae folium
- Known today as
- Aloysia citrodora, a deciduous shrub of the family Verbenaceae from Chile and Peru, grown in European gardens. Grieve records its introduction into England in 1784 and describes very fragrant, lance-shaped leaves in threes, three or four inches long, pale green, with veins at right angles to the midrib, and many small pale purple flowers in slim panicles in August; the leaves “will retain their odour for years and are used in perfumery.” The European Medicines Agency’s assessment report names citral, as neral and geranial, among the main constituents of the oil, and verbascoside (acteoside) among those of the leaf.
- Kind
- Plant
- Constituents
- citral, verbascoside
- In other databases
- Plants of the World Online · GBIF · Wikidata
Caution. Not for those allergic to plants of the Verbenaceae family, nor for children, nor in pregnancy or breast-feeding, for lack of data.
Lemon verbena: what was it used for?
A soothing tea for the stomach and the nerves. Grieve calls it febrifuge and sedative, its uses “similar to those of mint, orange flowers, or melissa,” as a stomachic and antispasmodic in dyspepsia, indigestion, and flatulence. The assessment report adds its long use as an infusion for stomach ache and indigestion, its place in the Spanish Pharmacopoeia by 1925, and its use in Europe, South America, and North Africa for diarrhoea, flatulence, insomnia, and rheumatism.
Lemon verbena: what does modern science say?
The European Medicines Agency’s herbal committee accepts the leaf as a traditional herbal medicine, “exclusively based upon long-standing use,” for the relief of mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep, and for mild digestive complaints including bloating and flatulence (monograph of 2021). Its assessment report found that the existing data did not meet the criteria for well-established use, and that the one published clinical trial could not be considered for these preparations because of its limitations, among them the lack of any objective measure of sleep quality.
Pharmacognosy & Toxicology
- Constituents
- citral ChEMBLas neral and geranial, among the main constituents of the oil
- verbascoside ChEMBLalso called acteoside, in the leaf
- Mechanism
- Not established in the sources read for this entry.
- Standing
- European Union herbal monograph (2021): traditional use, “exclusively based upon long-standing use,” for mild mental stress, to aid sleep, and for mild digestive complaints.
- European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. European Union herbal monograph on Verbenae citriodorae folium (Lemon verbena leaf). EMA/HMPC/376770/2019, 13 January 2021. Read in full · the text read
- European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. Assessment report on Verbenae citriodorae folium. EMA/HMPC/376761/2019, 13 January 2021. Read in part · the text read
Constituent names open the compound’s record at PubChem, and “ChEMBL” beside a name opens its record at ChEMBL, the European Bioinformatics Institute’s database of bioactive molecules. Where a mechanism line was checked against ChEMBL (ChEMBL 37, read 1 October 2026), the check is shown with the measured value and its source paper, or says plainly that nothing has been measured. Doses are as the references give them, for description only; this is not medical advice. Each source carries the result of its check against Crossref, PubMed, or the authority’s page: see Verification.
Lemon verbena: what lore surrounds it?
The leaves, Grieve notes, “have been suggested to replace tea,” and the shrub could reach fifteen feet in the Isle of Wight and other sheltered places. She warns against confusing its essence with that of lemongrass.
Sources
- Grieve, M. A Modern Herbal, “Verbena, Lemon.” As published on botanical.com. Read in full · the text read
- European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. European Union herbal monograph on Verbenae citriodorae folium (Lemon verbena leaf). EMA/HMPC/376770/2019, 13 January 2021. Read in full · the text read
- European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products. Assessment report on Verbenae citriodorae folium. EMA/HMPC/376761/2019, 13 January 2021. Read in part · the text read
Verification
- Checked
- October 1, 2026
- Passes
- Every sentence read against its sources, in the pass over the remaining 343 entries
- The Standing line checked against the authority it names (EMA, WHO, FDA, CITES, Commission E)
- Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database
- Sources
- 3 cited: 2 read in full, 1 read in part.
- Corrections
- None were needed.
What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.
Club members can point at a technical term in this entry, such as a constituent, an action, or a word of Jung’s, to read its definition from the source. The Club.
Cite This Entry
Version 1 · first published October 17, 2026
- Chicago
“Lemon verbena.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified October 17, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/lemon-verbena.
- MLA
“Lemon verbena.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 17 Oct. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/lemon-verbena. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.
- APA
Lemon verbena. (2026, October 17). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/lemon-verbena
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See Also
Sharing citral, verbascoside
Verbena officinalis · Citrus medica · Melissa officinalis · Verbascum thapsus
Drawing on the same sources: Grieve
Nearby in the alphabet
Lenitive electuary · Leech (Hirudo medicinalis) · Lesser bean-trefoil (Anagyris foetida, a Mediterranean shrub of the pea family) · Letters from Heaven · Laurel (Laurus nobilis) · Laudanum (with saffron, cinnamon, and cloves)
Historical description, not medical advice.
