With common names that include Mexican mint, Spanish thyme, and Indian borage, Cuban oregano leaves many gardeners wondering exactly what it is when they encounter it at a garden center. Portland, Oregon, USA: Timber Press. excellent addition to stuffings for meat and poultry. Meyer JY, 2000. Portland, OR, USA: Timber Press, 480 pp. The leaves are strongly flavoured and make an Plectranthus amboinicus Common name: Cuban oregano Other common names: Ajwain leaf, Broad leaf thyme, Country borage, French thyme, Indian borage, Indian mint, Mexican mint, Soup mint, Spanish thyme, Three in one The PLANTS Database. The type specimen of the species was collected in Amboina, Moluccas, resulting in its species name amboinicus (Roux, 2003). Finely chopped, they Lukhoba CW; Simmonds MSJ; Paton AJ, 2006. Flowers are pale blue or mauve to Spreng. Invasive species in the Pacific: a technical review and draft regional strategy. Many Lamiaceae species have square stems (although square stems are also found in other families), aromatic aerial parts when crushed, simple opposite leaves, and two-lipped flowers. Since it is a popular and widely used herb, it may continue to escape cultivation and invade native ecosystems. I see the reason for the confusion! (2010). Plectranthus species are also used for dry season fodder (Lukhoba et al., 2006), which might also result in further spread. It was growing in the Virgin Islands by 1881, Puerto Rico by 1886, Guadeloupe by 1892, Jamaica by 1897, and Cuba by 1912 (Smithsonian Herbarium collections). USDA-ARS, 2014. http://www.tropicos.org/Project/FM, Govaerts R, 2014. Indian borage; Other Scientific Names. Wyk BEvan, 2005. Honolulu, USA: University of Hawaii. Sprawling and somewhat succulent aromatic herb to 1 m high, sometimes subligneous and prostrate at base, the branchlets ascending, densely spreading-hirsute. National list of invasive and potentially invasive plants in the Republic of Cuba - 2011. http://botany.si.edu/Antilles/WestIndies/catalog.htm, Bolivia Checklist, 2014. St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Missouri Botanical Garden. It is known to grow in rocky, loamy or sandy soil (Roux, 2003). Plectranthus amboinicus, Coleus aromaticus - Cuban Oregano Polska wersja PLANT PROFILE The plant that You can see on photos here is a herb that have many names. Plectranthus: a review of ethnobotanical uses. Manila, Philippines: Bureau of Printing. Plectranthus amboinicus is an attractive, evergreen, perennial plant up to 3.3 feet (1 m) tall, with... Hardiness. Detailed coverage of invasive species threatening livelihoods and the environment worldwide. Barbados: University of the West Indies. More information about modern web browsers can be found at http://browsehappy.com/. It is used medicinally in Brazil for the treatment of skin ulcerations caused by Leishmania braziliensis, in Malaysia to treat burns and as a poultice for centipedes and scorpion bites, and in India, the juice of the leaves is used to treat skin allergies (Lukhoba et al., 2006). Flora Mesoamericana. The species is tolerant of some shade (PIER, 2014), preferring fertile, well-drained soils in partially shaded areas (Whistler, 2000). Famille 175. tall. PIER, 2014. The species epithet “amboinicus” is derived from Ambon, an island in the East Indies where Rumphius, a well-known botanist, is from. National Plant Data Center, NRCS, USDA. Leaves have stalks densely velvety, like most mint family plants. Manila, Philippines: Bureau of Printing. In Bolivia the species is cultivated in semideciduous forest (Bolivia Checklist, 2014). USDA-ARS, 2014. Foto n. 122665 - kryddkarlbergare (Plectranthus amboinicus) Flowers and leaves at Enchanting Floral Gardens of Kula, Maui - Credit: Forest and Kim Starr - Plants of Hawaii - Image licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License, permitting sharing and adaptation with attribution. Flowers terminal, spicate, 10-20 cm long, densely pubescent, the verticils 10-20(or more)-flowered, subglobose, the bracts 3-4 mm long, hirsute and glandular; pedicels slender, hirsute, to 5 mm long; calyx campanulate, 1.5-4 mm long, hirsute and glandular, the upper lip erect, broadly ovate-oblong, the other teeth narrow, acute; corolla pale blue or mauve to pink, 8-12 mm long, the tube declinate, 3-4 mm long, expanding distally, pubescent without, the upper lip to 4.5 mm long, 3 mm wide, erect, puberulent, the lower lop to 5-6 mm long, 4 mm wide, concave; stamens with filaments mostly fused into a tube around the style. Generate a print friendly version containing only the sections you need. An enumeration of Philippine flowering plants. World Checklist of Lamiaceae. Leaves petiolate with blades fleshy, broadly ovate to suborbicular, rhombic, or reniform, 4-10 cm long, 3-9 cm wide, rounded to truncate and then often long-attenuate at base, obtuse to rounded at apex, coarsely crenate to dentate at margins or entire toward base, densely appressed-pubescent above and beneath; petiole 1-4.5 cm long. Department of Botany Vascular Plant Family Access Page: Lamiaceae (Labiatae). World Checklist of Lamiaceae., Richmond, London, UK: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Beltsville, Maryland, USA: National Germplasm Resources Laboratory. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Washington DC, USA: Smithsonian Institution. Associated Fauna: The flowers are pollinated by bees and butterflies, Cultivation: Plectranthus amboinicus 'Variegatus' is easy-to-grow and handles hot weather well. http://ecflora.cavehill.uwi.edu/index.html, CABI, Undated. Hanelt P; Buttner R; Mansfeld R, 2001. 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