Winter savory
| Winter Savory | ||||||||||||||
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| Satureja montana L. | ||||||||||||||
Winter savory (Satureja montana) is a perennial flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to warm temperate regions of southern Europe.
It is a semi-evergreen, semi-woody subshrub growing to 50 cm tall. The leaves are opposite, oval-lanceolate, 1-2 cm long and 5 mm broad. The flowers are white.
Cultivation and uses
Easy to grow, it makes an attractive border plant for any culinary herb garden. It requires six hours of sun a day in soil that drains well.
Winter savory is now little used, but for hundreds of years both it and Summer savory have been grown and used, virtually side by side. Both have strong spicy flavour.
In cooking, winter savory has a reputation for going very well with both beans and meats, very often lighter meats such as chicken or turkey, and can be used in stuffing. It has a strong flavour while uncooked but loses much of its flavour under prolonged cooking. It may also be used medicinally, it is a stimulant, and is also a known aphrodisiac.
Medicinal Uses
Antiseptic; Aromatic; Carminative; Digestive; Expectorant; Stings; Stomachic.
"Winter savory is most often used as a culinary herb, but it also has marked medicinal benefits, especially upon the whole digestive system[254]. The plant has a stronger action than the closely related summer savory, S. hortensis[254]. The whole herb, and especially the flowering shoots, is mildly antiseptic, aromatic, carminative, digestive, mildly expectorant and stomachic[4, 7, 9, 14, 21]. Taken internally, it is said to be a sovereign remedy for colic and a cure for flatulence[4], whilst it is also used to treat gastro-enteritis, cystitis, nausea, diarrhoea, bronchial congestion, sore throat and menstrual disorders[9, 238]. It should not be prescribed for pregnant women[238]. A sprig of the plant, rubbed onto bee or wasp stings, brings instant relief[4, K]. The plant is harvested in the summer when in flower and can be used fresh or dried[238]. The essential oil forms an ingredient in lotions for the scalp in cases of incipient baldness[7]. An ointment made from the plant is used externally to relieve arthritic joints[7]." (Taken from Plants for a Future, pfaf.org.)
Chemical Constituents: Carvacrol (30 - 75%), thymol (1.0 - 5.0%), p-cymene (10 - 20%), gamma-terpineol (2.0 - 10%), 1,8-cineole (3.8%), borneol (12.5%), a-terpineol (2.5%)
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