flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...
s in the
verbena
''Verbena'' (), also known as vervain or verveine, is a genus in the family Verbenaceae. It contains about 150 species of annual and perennial herbaceous or semi-woody flowering plants. The majority of the species are native to the Americas ...
family,
Verbenaceae
The Verbenaceae ( ), the verbena family or vervain family, is a family of mainly tropical flowering plants. It contains trees, shrubs, and herbs notable for heads, spikes, or clusters of small flowers, many of which have an aromatic smell.
T ...
. It was named after Augustin Lippi (1678–1705), a French naturalist and botanist (with Italian origins). He was killed in
Abyssinia
Abyssinia (; also known as Abyssinie, Abissinia, Habessinien, or Al-Habash) was an ancient region in the Horn of Africa situated in the northern highlands of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea.Sven Rubenson, The survival of Ethiopian independence, ...
. The genus contains roughly 200 species of
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...
shrub
A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...
s that are found around the world. Plants are fragrant due to their
essential oil
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the ...
s, which vary between species but may include
estragole
Estragole (''p''-allylanisole, methyl chavicol) is a phenylpropene, a natural organic compound. Its chemical structure consists of a benzene ring substituted with a methoxy group and an allyl group. It is an isomer of anethole, differing with resp ...
,
carvacrol
Carvacrol, or cymophenol, C6H3(CH3)(OH)C3H7, is a monoterpene, monoterpenoid phenol. It has a characteristic pungent, warm odor of oregano.
Natural occurrence
Carvacrol is present in the essential oil of ''Origanum vulgare'' (oregano), oil of t ...
,
linalool
Linalool () refers to two enantiomers of a naturally occurring terpene alcohol found in many flowers and spice plants. Together with geraniol, nerol, and citronellol, linalool is one of the rose alcohols. Linalool has multiple commercial app ...
or
limonene
Limonene () is a colorless liquid aliphatic hydrocarbon classified as a cyclic monoterpene, and is the major component in the essential oil of citrus fruit peels. The (+)-isomer, occurring more commonly in nature as the fragrance of oranges, ...
. The
leaves
A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...
of certain species, such as '' L. graveolens'', can be used as a culinary
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 ...
similar to
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 ...
.
Selected species
* ''
Lippia abyssinica
''Lippia abyssinica'', or koseret (), is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. It is endemic to Ethiopia but cultivated throughout tropical African countries. The specific epithet ''abyssinica'' derives from Latin a ...
'' (
Otto
Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants '' Audo'', '' Odo'', '' Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity".
The name is recorded fr ...
&
A.Dietr.
Albert Gottfried Dietrich (8 November 1795 – 22 May 1856) was a German botanist born in Danzig.
Dietrich was curator at the Botanical Garden in Berlin and was an instructor at the institute of horticulture at Berlin-Schöneberg. From 1833 to 185 ...
Lippia alba
''Lippia alba'' is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family, Verbenaceae, that is native to southern Texas in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America.
In Ethiopia the plant is also known as kosere ...
'' (Mill.) N.E.Br. ex Britton & P.Wilson – Bushy lippia, white lippia (United States (
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
), Mexico, the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
,
Central America
Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
, and South America)
* '' Lippia carterae'' (Moldenke) G.L.Nesom – Licorice verbena (
Baja California
Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...
, Mexico, and Central America as far south as Nicaragua)
* '' Lippia javanica'' (Burm.f.) Spreng.
* '' Lippia kituiensis'' Vatke
* ''
Lippia micromera
''Lippia micromera'', commonly referred to as stick oregano or false oregano, is a plant species. It is used in regional cuisines including Puerto Rican cuisine and Dominican cuisine. It has white flowers.
It is in the ''Verbena
''Verbena ...
Lippia pretoriensis
''Lippia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. It was named after Augustin Lippi (1678–1705), a French naturalist and botanist (with Italian origins). He was killed in Abyssinia. The genus contains roughly 200 s ...
Aloysia citrodora
''Aloysia citrodora'', lemon verbena, is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family (biology), family Verbenaceae, native plant, native to South America. Other common names include lemon beebrush. It was brought to Europe by the Spain, Sp ...
Lantana montevidensis
''Lantana montevidensis'' is a species of lantana native to South America. It is known by many common names, such as: trailing lantana, weeping lantana, creeping lantana, small lantana, purple lantana or trailing shrubverbena.
Description
''La ...
Lantana ukambensis
''Lantana'' () is a genus of about 150 species of perennial flowering plants in the verbena family, Verbenaceae. They are native to tropical regions of the Americas and Africa but exist as an introduced species in numerous areas, especially in ...
Mulguraea ligustrina
''Mulguraea'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Verbenaceae.
Its native range is Peru to southern South America. It is found in the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru.
The genus name of ''Mulguraea'' is in hono ...
Phyla canescens
''Phyla canescens'' is a species of Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous plant in the family Verbenaceae, native to South America. It has been introduced to Australia as an ornamental plant and low-maintenance lawn, but has become naturalised an ...