Origanum
Encyclopedia
Origanum is a genus of about 20 species of aromatic herb
Herb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...

s in the family Lamiaceae
Lamiaceae
The mints, taxonomically known as Lamiaceae or Labiatae, are a family of flowering plants. They have traditionally been considered closely related to Verbenaceae, but in the 1990s, phylogenetic studies suggested that many genera classified in Verbenaceae belong instead in Lamiaceae...

, native to the Mediterranean region east to eastern Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

. The genus includes some important culinary herbs, including marjoram
Marjoram
Marjoram is a somewhat cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavours...

 and oregano
Oregano
Oregano – scientifically named Origanum vulgare by Carolus Linnaeus – is a common species of Origanum, a genus of the mint family . It is native to warm-temperate western and southwestern Eurasia and the Mediterranean region.Oregano is a perennial herb, growing from 20–80 cm tall,...

.

Origanum species are used as food plants by the larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...

e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...

 species, including Coleophora albitarsella
Coleophora
Coleophora is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions...

.

Selected species

  • Origanum acutidens
  • Origanum amanum
  • Origanum calcaratum
  • Origanum compactum
  • Origanum dictamnus
    Origanum dictamnus
    Origanum dictamnus , known in Greek as Δίκταμο or in Cretan dialect Έρωντας , is a tender perennial plant that grows 20–30 cm high...

    – hop marjoram, Cretan dittany, dittany of Crete
  • Origanum laevigatum
  • Origanum leptocladum
  • Origanum libanoticum
  • Origanum majorana – (sweet) marjoram
    Marjoram
    Marjoram is a somewhat cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavours...

  • Origanum ×majoricum – hardy sweet marjoram
  • Origanum microphyllum
  • Origanum rotundifolium
  • Origanum scabrum
  • Origanum sipyleum
  • Origanum syriacum
  • Origanum vulgareoregano
    Oregano
    Oregano – scientifically named Origanum vulgare by Carolus Linnaeus – is a common species of Origanum, a genus of the mint family . It is native to warm-temperate western and southwestern Eurasia and the Mediterranean region.Oregano is a perennial herb, growing from 20–80 cm tall,...


External links

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