HERB - Dittany

[Gaylin Walli]

Katherine wrote:
>I am trying to locate some Dittany of Crete, but one of my sources ("The
>Illustrated Culppeper") says it's been largely replaced by marjoram.  Does
>anyone know if it's still possible to obtain this plant?
>Or should I pack for Greece?

Don't pack just yet. Dittany of Crete's botanical name should be
Origanum dictamnus. This is a perennial with "Procumbent white,
woolly stems, usually trailing, develop pink or purplish flowers
in the summer. The small gray leaves have a velvety texture." :)

Don't confuse it with Dictamnus albus L.(a.k.a. Dictamnus fraxinella),
which is sometimes known as dittany and fraxinella. This perennial
is part of the Rutaceae family and reaches a height of approximately
one meter (Dittany of Crete, on the other hand only reaches a max
height, according to my books, of 0.3 meters). Dictamnus albus is
sometimes labeled "the gas plant" because it will often give a burst
of flame when a lighted match is held beneath a flower cluster.

Also don't confuse it with Cunila origanoides, the American plant
which is sometimes called Maryland dittany or stone-mint. The botanical
is sometimes also called Satureja origanoides and Cunila mariana
in my books and the lady at the local garden store told me it's
mostly used for bordering gardens, though only ornamentally and
not as a useful plant (which seems weird because I have a reference
which says the leaves are used in tea because of their minty flavour).

Check your botanicals, check your sources, and check the descriptions
of the plant to make sure you've got the right one. Sorry to
blither on...

Jasmine de Cordoba, Midrealm
g.walli at infoengine.com or jasmine at infoengine.com

"Si enim alicui placet mea devotio, gaudebo; si autem
nulli placet, memet ipsam tamen juvat quod feci."
-- Hroswith of Gandersheim
============================================================================
Go to http://www.ansteorra.org/lists.html to perform mailing list tasks.