Myrica gale

 ( Gale ) 

/ref>.The main components found in both leaf and flower essential oils were monoterpene hydrocarbons: α-pinene (12.3, 23.5.%),p-cymene (12.8, 4.9%), and limonene (11.0, 5.6%), respectively.While oxygenated monoterpenes: 1,8-cineole (28.6, 44.2%).10.25135/rnp.190.20.04.1628

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Ecology

Use by wildlife: /ref>

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Uses

The foliage has a sweet scent and is a traditional insect repellent, used by campers to keep biting insects out of tents. It is also a traditional component of royal wedding bouquets and is used variously in perfumery and as a condiment.

In Scotland, UK, it has been traditionally used to ward off the Highland midge, Archived and it is marketed as an insect repellent and as an ingredient in some soaps.

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Food and medicine

Dried leaves and fruits have been used as a spice in soups and stews and as a flavouring for beer; roots and bark are used as a source of yellow dye for calfskin and wool; Karolina Wawrzyńczak et al. Biotechnol Food Sci, 2019, 83 (1), 87-96 http://www.bfs.p.lodz.pl 88 catkins and fruits as a source of wax for candles; and leaf and fruit infusions as an insecticide. It has been also used in traditional medicine as a remedy for /ref>

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The leaves can be dried to make tea, and both the nutlets and leaves can be used (either chopped or dried) to make a seasoning.

(2026). 9781402767159, Sterling. ISBN 9781402767159

In northwestern Europe (Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands), it was much used in a mixture called gruit as a flavouring for beer from the Middle Ages to the 16th century, but it fell into disuse after hops supplanted gruit herbs for political and economic reasons.Justyna, Wubs-Mrozewicz (2005). Hopped Beer as an innovation; The Bergen Beer Market around 1200-1600 in the European Context. H. Brand (ed.) Trade, Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange, (2005) pp. 152-168 In modern times, some brewers have revisited this historic technique and in Denmark and Sweden the plant is commonly used to prepare home-flavoured schnaps.Patrick E. McGovern, Gretchen R. Hall, Armen Mirzoian, " A biomolecular archaeological approach to Nordic grog" in Danish Journal of Archaeology (2013) pp. 112-131, see p. 124

In some Native Canadian cultures in Eastern Canada, the plant has been used as a traditional remedy for stomach aches, fever, bronchial ailments, and liver problems.

In 2007 there were plans to increase production of the plant in Scotland for use as an essential oil for treating sensitive skin and acne. The plant has been listed as an abortifacient and therefore should not be consumed by people who are, or might be, pregnant.