''Lavandula multifida'', the fernleaf lavender or Egyptian lavender, is a small plant, sometimes a shrub, native to the southern regions of the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, including

Iberia The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, compri ...

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

, Northwest Africa and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. The plant grows up to tall. The stems are grey and woolly. Leaves are fernlike, double pinnate and silver to green in colour. Dark blue or violet flowers may be either single or three-pronged, and are borne on long stems held above the foliage. ''L. multifida'' is grown both as a

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

and as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

. Foliage is aromatic, but it has been noted that the scent is closer to that of

oregano Oregano (, ; ''Origanum vulgare'') is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It was native to the Mediterranean region, but widely naturalised elsewhere in the temperate climate, temperate Northern Hemisphere. Oregano is a ...

than to other kinds of lavender. In cooler latitudes it is killed by winter frost, but can be grown as an annual. Cultivars include 'Spanish Eyes'.

References

External links

Mediterranean Plants Identification and Distribution
from the University of Reading
University of Oklahoma Department of Botany & MicrobiologyThe University of Reading
multifida Flora of the Canary Islands Flora of Spain Flora of Sicily Garden plants of Europe Drought-tolerant plants Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Flora of the Mediterranean basin {{Lamiaceae-stub