Minthostachys verticillata, commonly known as peperina, is the only species of the genus Minthostachys

Minthostachys

Minthostachys is a genus of the mint family Lamiaceae currently comprising seventeen species of aromatic scandent shrubs. It occurs along the Andes from Northern Venezuela through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia to Central Argentina....

known from Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

. It occurs in the northwestern and central regions of the country. It may be the most economically important species of its genus, as it is collected extensively for its essential oil

Essential oil

An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils or aetherolea, or simply as the "oil of" the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove...

s. These have been repeatedly examined for their composition, variability, and possible pharmacological effects. Due to varying views on the circumscription of species, the species is sometimes subsumed with others under the catch-all name Minthostachys mollis

Minthostachys mollis

Minthostachys mollis is a medicinal plant restricted to the South American Andes from Venezuela to Bolivia. It is the most variable and widely distributed species of the genus Minthostachys.-Medicinal uses:...

.