upcScavenger » Lamiaceae » Wiki: Winter Savory

Winter savory

( Lamiaceae )

Description
Distribution and habitat
Cultivation and uses
Culinary uses
Traditional uses
Strewing Herb
References
External links

C O N T E N T S

Plant Savory Summer Winter

Rank: 100%

Wiki
Comments
Media

Satureja montana ( winter savory or mountain savory), is a perennial, semi-evergreen herb in the family Lamiaceae, native to warm temperate regions of southern Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa. It has dark green leaves and summer flowers ranging from pale lavender, or pink to white. The closely related summer savory ( Satureja hortensis L.) is an annual plant.

Description

It grows to between tall. The leathery, dark green leaf are opposite, oval-lanceolate or needle-like, Bob Beckstrom, Karan Davis Cutler, Kathleen Fisher, Phillip Giroux, Judy Glattstein, Michael MacCaskey, Bill Marken, Charlie Nardozzi, Sally Roth, Marcia Tatroe, Lance Walheim and Ann Whitman 1–2 cm long and 5 mm broad. The appear in summer, between July and October, and range from pale lavender or pink to white. The flowers are smaller than summer savoury flowers. It contains carvacrol, a monoterpenoid phenol.

The herb was first published by Carl Linnaeus in his book Species Plantarum on page 568 in 1753. The Latin specific epithet montana refers to mountains or coming from mountains,Archibald William Smith leading to the common name 'mountain savory'.

Distribution and habitat

Satureja montana is native plant to temperate areas between Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa. It has been naturalised in Great Britain. It can be found growing in old walls, on dry banks and rocks on hillsides, or rocky mountain slopes,

(2025). 9781405487993, Parragon. ISBN 9781405487993

usually on calcareous or alkaline soils.

Cultivation and uses

There is evidence of its use about 2000 years ago by the ancient Ancient Rome and Greeks.

Winter savory is easy to grow and can be used as a culinary herb garden edging plant. It requires six hours of sun per day and well-draining soil.Sandra-Jane Goddard In temperate climates it becomes dormant in winter, putting out leaves on the bare stems in the spring. While dormant, it should not be cut back; stems which appear dead will leaf-out again. Winter savory is hardy and has a low-bunching habit.

It is hardy to USDA Hardiness zone and can be propagated from softwood cuttings. Winter savory is used as a companion plant for beans, keeping away, and is also planted with to reduce mildew and . winter savory

S. montana 'Nana' is a known dwarf cultivar. S. montana 'Prostrate White' is a small white flowered form.

Culinary uses

In cooking, winter savory has a reputation for going very well with both beans and meats,Terry Breverton very often lighter meats such as chicken or turkey, and can be used in stuffing. It can also be used in soups and sauces. It has a strong flavour (stronger than summer savory) while uncooked but loses much of its flavour with prolonged cooking. It can be added to as a coating for various meats including trout.K. V. Peter (Editor)

Traditional uses

Winter savory has been purported to have antiseptic, aromatic, carminative, and digestive benefits. It has also been used as an expectorant, and in the treatment of bee stingsJane Eastoe Joan Parry Dutton J. Ingle and Nicholas Culpeper or insect bites through the use of a poultice of the leaves. The plant has a stronger action than the closely related summer savory.

Taken internally, it is said to be a remedy for colic and a cure for flatulence, whilst it is also used to treat gastro-enteritis, cystitis, nausea, diarrhoea, bronchial congestion, sore throat and menstrual disorders.

Therapeutic-grade oil has been determined to inhibit the growth of Candida albicans.Oberg K, Rolling L, Oberg C. in The Journal of the Utah Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. 2005;82:60-72

The plant is harvested when flowering in the summer and can be used fresh or dried. The essential oil is an ingredient in lotions for the scalp in cases of incipient baldness. An ointment made from the plant is used externally to relieve arthritic joints.

In traditional herbal medicine, summer savory was believed to be an aphrodisiac, while winter savory was believed to inhibit sexual desire (an anaphrodisiac). French herbalist Maurice Messegue claimed that savory was 'the herb of happiness'.

Strewing Herb

The Saturejas have been traditionally used to strew on the floor since the medieval times, as an aromatic herb that reduce insects.

External links