Rosemary

Rosmarinus officinalis
Mint family (Lamiaceae)

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Salvia rosmarinus (), commonly known as rosemary, is a shrub with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers. It is a member of the sage family, Lamiaceae.

The species is native to the Mediterranean region, as well as Portugal and Spain. It has a number of cultivars and its leaves are commonly used as a flavoring.

Description

Rosemary has a fibrous root system. It forms an aromatic evergreen shrub with leaves similar to Tsuga needles. Forms range from upright to trailing; the upright forms can reach between 1.2–1.8 metres (4–6 ft) tall. The leaves are evergreen, 2–4 cm (3⁄4–1+1⁄2 in) long and 2–5 mm (1⁄16–3⁄16 in) broad, green above, and white below, with dense, short, woolly hair.

The plant flowers in spring and summer in temperate climates, but the plants can be in constant bloom in warm climates; flowers are white, pink, purple or deep blue. The branches are dotted with groups of 2 to 3 flowers down its length. Rosemary also has a tendency to flower outside its normal flowering season; it has been known to flower as late as early December, and as early as mid-February (in the Northern Hemisphere). The plant can live as long as 35 years.

Similar species

Salvia jordanii (formerly Rosmarinus eriocalyx) is a closely related species native to Iberia and the Maghreb of Africa.

Taxonomy

Salvia rosmarinus is now considered one of many hundreds of species in the genus Salvia. Formerly it was placed in a much smaller genus, Rosmarinus, which contained only two to four species including Rosmarinus officinalis (), which is now considered a synonym. Both the original and current genus names of the species were applied by the 18th-century naturalist and founding taxonomist Carl Linnaeus.

Etymology

Elizabeth Kent noted in her Flora Domestica (1823), "The botanical name of this plant is compounded of two Latin words [ros marinus], signifying Sea-dew; and indeed Rosemary thrives best by the sea."

Distribution and habitat

It is native to the Mediterranean region, as well as Portugal and northwestern Spain. It was first mentioned on cuneiform stone tablets as early as 5000 BCE. The herb was naturalized in China as early as 220 CE, during the late Han dynasty.

Rosemary came to England at an unknown date, though it is likely that the Romans brought it when they invaded Britain in 43 CE. Even so, there are no viable records containing rosemary in Britain until the 8th century CE. This mention was in a document which was later credited to Charlemagne, who promoted the general usage of herbs and ordered rosemary specifically to be grown in monastic gardens and farms.

There are no records of rosemary being properly naturalized in Britain until 1338, when cuttings were sent to Queen Philippa by her mother, Countess Joan of Hainault. It was then planted in the garden of the old palace of Westminster. Since then, rosemary can be found in most English herbal texts.

Rosemary finally arrived in the Americas with early European settlers in the beginning of the 17th century, and was soon spread to South America and distributed globally.

It is reasonably hardy in cool climates. Special cultivars like 'Arp' can withstand winter temperatures down to about −20 °C (−4 °F). It can withstand droughts, surviving a severe lack of water for lengthy periods. It is considered a potentially invasive species and its seeds are often difficult to start, with a low germination rate.

Cultivation

Since it is attractive and drought-tolerant, rosemary is used as an ornamental plant in gardens and for xeriscape landscaping, especially in regions of Mediterranean climate. It is considered easy to grow and pest-resistant. Rosemary can grow quite large and retain attractiveness for many years, can be pruned into formal shapes and low hedges, and has been used for topiary. It is easily grown in pots. The groundcover cultivars spread widely, with a dense and durable texture.

In order to harvest from the plant, the bush should be matured 2–3 years to ensure it is large enough to withstand it. The amount harvested should not exceed 20% of the growth in order to preserve the plant.

Cultivars

Numerous cultivars have been selected for garden use.

'Albus' – white flowers
'Arp' – leaves light green, lemon-scented and especially cold-hardy
'Aureus' – leaves speckled yellow
'Benenden Blue' – leaves narrow, dark green
'Blue Boy' – dwarf, small leaves
'Blue Rain' – pink flowers
'Golden Rain' – leaves green, with yellow streaks
'Gold Dust' – dark green leaves, with golden streaks but stronger than 'Golden Rain'
'Haifa' – low and small, white flowers
'Irene' – low and lax, trailing, intense blue flowers
'Lockwood de Forest' – procumbent selection from 'Tuscan Blue'
'Ken Taylor' – shrubby
'Majorica Pink' – pink flowers
'Miss Jessopp's Upright' – distinctive tall fastigiate form, with wider leaves.
'Pinkie' – pink flowers
'Prostratus' – lower groundcover
'Pyramidalis' (or 'Erectus') – fastigiate form, pale blue flowers
'Remembrance' (or 'Gallipoli') – taken from the Gallipoli Peninsula
'Roseus' – pink flowers
'Salem' – pale blue flowers, cold-hardy similar to 'Arp'
'Severn Sea' – spreading, low-growing, with arching branches, flowers deep violet
'Sudbury Blue' – blue flowers
'Tuscan Blue' – traditional robust upright form
'Wilma's Gold' – yellow leaves

The following cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:

'Benenden Blue'
'Miss Jessopp's Upright'
'Severn Sea'
'Sissinghurst Blue'

Uses

Culinary

Rosemary leaves are used as a flavoring in foods, such as stews, stuffing, roasted meats, and marinades.

Fresh or dried leaves are used in traditional Mediterranean cuisine, having an aroma of pine which complements many cooked foods. Herbal tea can be made from the leaves. In some cooking, the woody stem, stripped of its leaves, is used as a skewer.

Fragrance

Hungary water, dating to the 14th century, was one of the first alcohol-based perfumes in Europe, and was primarily made from distilled rosemary. Rosemary oil is used in perfumes, shampoos, cleaning products, and aromatherapy.

Phytochemicals

Rosemary essential oil contains some 150 phytochemicals, including rosmarinic acid, camphor, A-pinene, caffeic acid, ursolic acid, betulinic acid, carnosic acid, and carnosol. Rosemary essential oil contains 10–20% camphor.

Rosemary extract, specifically the type mainly consisting of carnosic acid and carnosol, is approved as a food preservative in several countries, having E number E392.

In culture

Rosemary was considered sacred to ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks. In Don Quixote (Part One, Chapter XVII), the fictional hero uses rosemary in his recipe for balm of fierabras. It was written about by Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE) and Pedanius Dioscorides (c. 40 CE to c. 90 CE), a Greek botanist (amongst other things). The latter talked about rosemary in his most famous writing, De Materia Medica, one of the most influential herbal books in history.

The plant has been used as a symbol for remembrance during war commemorations and funerals in Europe and Australia. Mourners would throw it into graves as a symbol of remembrance for the dead. In Australia, sprigs of rosemary are worn on ANZAC Day and sometimes Remembrance Day to signify remembrance; the herb grows wild on the Gallipoli Peninsula, where many Australians died during World War I.

Several Shakespeare plays refer to the use of rosemary in burial or memorial rites. In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Ophelia says, "There's rosemary, that's for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember." It likewise appears in Shakespeare's Winter's Tale in Act 4 Scene 4, where Perdita talks about "Rosemary and Rue". In Act 4 Scene 5 of Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence admonishes the Capulet household to "stick your rosemary on this fair corse, and as the custom is, and in her best array, bear her to church." It is also said that "In the language of flowers it means 'fidelity in love.'"

Rosemary is one of the four herbs mentioned in the refrain of the folk song "Scarborough Fair."

In the Spanish fairy tale The Sprig of Rosemary, the heroine touches the hero with the titular sprig of rosemary in order to restore his magically lost memory.

Rosemary is used in Danube Swabian culture for christenings, weddings, burials and festivals; for example, an apple with a sprig of rosemary in it is used for Kirchweih celebrations.