Plants belonging to the genus Erigeron of the Asteraceae family are commonly referred to as fleabane. The customary name stems from the long-held, but apparently misguided, belief that some members of this group of herbs repelled fleas when dried and burned, hung around homes, or stuffed into mattresses. The practice of utilizing fleabane for such purposes was carried out for several generations in North America after the first European settlements on the continent were established. Fleabane was readily available to the settlers since the plants are particularly abundant in the continent’s temperate zones.