Common Tansy is an aromatic plant with numerous, yellow, button-shaped flowers in dense, flat-topped clusters at the tops of the plants. In British Columbia Common Tansy is considered a noxious perennial that is undesirable forage and that may be toxic to livestock. It can be toxic to humans if large quantities are consumed.

Common Tansy seed was brought to the United States as early as 1631 and because of its many medicinal uses, common tansy was widely cultivated in the gardens of early European settlers. In the past, Common Tansy was used to eliminate parasitic worms from the digestive tract, sometimes with fatal results. Common Tansy is often associated with death, in part because of the noxious odor of its flowering stems they were used at funerals to repel flies from the deceased.

Common tansy was one of many seeds brought to the New England Plymouth colony by John Winthrop Jr in 1631. In the 1600s, the governor of Massachusetts referred to common tansy as a necessity in colonial gardens and encouraged extensive cultivation. By the 1950's, and much earlier in some areas, it became well established throughout North America. ~ USDA Forest Service and Weeds BC

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