''Reseda odorata'' is a species of flowering plant in the reseda family known by many common names, including garden mignonette and common mignonette. It is probably native to the Mediterranean Basin, but it can sometimes be found growing in the wild as an

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...

in many parts of the world.Flora of North America
/ref> These introductions are often garden escapees; the plant has long been kept 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 ...

for its fragrant flowers, the

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 ...

of which has been used in

perfume Perfume (, ) is a mixture of fragrance, fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), Fixative (perfumery), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agre ...

s. This is an annual herb, producing branching erect stems to 80 centimeters in maximum height. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

is a spike-like

raceme A raceme () or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate growth, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are ...

of many flowers. The fragrant flower has six white to yellowish or greenish petals, the upper ones each divided into three narrow, finger-like lobes. At the center of the flower are up to about 25

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s tipped with large dangling orange anthers.

Common names

Mignonette, Egyptian Mignonette., Sweet Reseda, Egyptian Rocket
/ref>

References

Reseda (plant), odorata Plants described in 1759 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Brassicales-stub