''Satureja'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of aromatic

plant Plants are the eukaryotes that form the Kingdom (biology), kingdom Plantae; they are predominantly Photosynthesis, photosynthetic. This means that they obtain their energy from sunlight, using chloroplasts derived from endosymbiosis with c ...

s of the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle, or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil (herb), ba ...

, related to

rosemary ''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 r ...

and

thyme Thyme () is a culinary herb consisting of the dried aerial parts of some members of the genus ''Thymus (plant), Thymus'' of flowering plants in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are native to Eurasia and north Africa. Thymes have culinary, medici ...

. It is native to southern and

southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe is a geographical sub-region of Europe, consisting primarily of the region of the Balkans, as well as adjacent regions and Archipelago, archipelagos. There are overlapping and conflicting definitions of t ...

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

, the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, and

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

. Historically, ''Satureja'' was defined broadly and many species of the subtribe Menthinae from throughout the world were included in it. In the modern cladistic era of botany, ''Satureja'' was redefined to a narrower monophyletic genus whose species are all native to Eurasia. Several species are cultivated as culinary herbs called savory, and they have become established in the wild in a few places.

Description

''Satureja'' species may be annual plant, annual or perennial plant, perennial. They are low-growing herbs and subshrubs, reaching heights of . The leaf, leaves are long, with flowers forming in whorls on the stem, white to pale pink-violet.

Ecology and cultivation

''Satureja'' species are food plants for the larva of some Lepidoptera (butterfly, butterflies and moths). Caterpillars of the moth ''Coleophora bifrondella'' feed exclusively on winter savory (''S. montana''). Savory may be grown purely for ornamental purposes; members of the genus need sun and well-drained soil.

Uses

Both summer savory (''Satureja hortensis'') and winter savory (''Satureja montana'') are used to flavor food. The former is preferred by cooks but as an annual is only available in summer; winter savory is an evergreen perennial. Savory plays an important part in Persian cuisine, Persian, Armenian cuisine, Armenian, Georgian cuisine, Georgian, Bulgarian cuisine, Bulgarian and Italian cuisine, particularly when cooking beans. It is also used to season the traditional Acadian stew known as '. The modern spice mixture Herbes de Provence has savory as one of the principal ingredients. In cuisine of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan, savory is often incorporated as a flavoring in black tea.

Species

Source: * ''Satureja adamovicii'' Šilic – Balkans * ''Satureja aintabensis'' P.H.Davis – Turkey * ''Satureja amani'' P.H.Davis – Turkey * ''Satureja atropatana'' Bunge – Iran * ''Satureja avromanica'' Maroofi – Iran * ''Satureja bachtiarica'' Bunge – Iran * ''Satureja boissieri'' Hausskn. ex Boiss. – Turkey, Iran * ''Satureja bzybica'' Woronow – Caucasus * ''Satureja × caroli-paui'' G.López – Spain ''(S. innota × S. montana)'' * ''Satureja cilicica'' P.H.Davis – Turkey * ''Satureja coerulea'' Janka – Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey * ''Satureja cuneifolia'' Ten – Spain, Italy, Greece, Albania, Yugoslavia, Iraq * ''Satureja × delpozoi'' Sánchez-Gómez, J.F.Jiménez & R.Morales – Spain ''(S. cuneifolia × S. intricata var. gracilis)'' * ''Satureja edmondii'' Briq. – Iran ** A recent study found the essential oils of Satureja ''edmondii'' have antimicrobial properties and can protect food from ''Staphylococcus aureus, S. aureus''. The test was conducted on commercial soup products. * ''Satureja × exspectata'' G.López – Spain ''(S. intricata var. gracilis × S. montana)'' * ''Satureja fukarekii'' Šilic – Yugoslavia * ''Satureja hellenica'' Halácsy – Greece * ''Satureja hortensis'' L. – summer savory – Italy, Bulgaria, Albania, Yugoslavia, Crimea, Caucasus, Altai Republic, Kazakhstan, Xinjiang, western Himalayas; naturalized in western Mediterranean, Persian Gulf sheikdoms, Cuba, Dominican Republic, scattered locations in United States ** The heterogeneous mixture of the ''Satureja hortensis L.'' essential oil in water serves as a natural herbicide. The addition of this mixture inhibits the root elongation of weeds which reduces the weed's root-to-shoot ratio. This further reduces the weed's cell division and inhibits its germination, growth, and physiological processes. * ''Satureja horvatii'' Šilic – Greece, Yugoslavia * ''Satureja icarica'' P.H.Davis – Greek Islands * ''Satureja innota'' (Pau) Font Quer – Spain * ''Satureja intermedia'' C.A.Mey. – Iran, Caucasus * ''Satureja intricata'' Lange – Spain * ''Satureja isophylla'' Rech.f. – Iran * ''Satureja kallarica'' Jamzad – Iran * ''Satureja kermanshahensis'' Jamzad – Iran * ''Satureja khuzistanica'' Jamzad – Iran **Essential oils of ''Satureja khuzistanica'' have been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties which can be useful in medical treatments. A recent study found that higher concentrations of essential oils of ''Satureja khuzistanica '' helped reduce adverse effects of traumatic brain injuries in rats. * ''Satureja kitaibelii'' Wierzb. ex Heuff. – Bulgaria, Romania, Yugoslavia * ''Satureja laxiflora'' K.Koch – Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Caucasus * ''Satureja linearifolia'' (Brullo & Furnari) Greuter – Cyrenaica region of Libya * ''Satureja macrantha'' C.A.Mey. – Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Caucasus * ''Satureja metastasiantha'' Rech.f. – Iraq * ''Satureja montana'' L. – winter savory – southern Europe, Turkey, Syria * ''Satureja mutica'' Fisch. & C.A.Mey. – Caucasus, Iran, Turkmenistan * ''Satureja nabateorum'' Danin & Hedge – Jordan * ''Satureja × orjenii'' Šilic – Yugoslavia ''(S. horvatii × S. montana)'' * ''Satureja pallaryi'' J.Thiébaut – Syria * ''Satureja parnassica'' Heldr. & Sart. ex Boiss. – Greece, Turkey * ''Satureja pilosa'' Velen. – Italy, Greece, Bulgaria * ''Satureja rumelica'' Velen. – Bulgaria * ''Satureja sahendica'' Bornm. – Iran * ''Satureja salzmannii'' (Kuntze) P.W.Ball – Morocco, Spain * ''Satureja spicigera'' (K.Koch) Boiss. – Turkey, Iran, Caucasus * ''Satureja spinosa'' L. – Turkey, Greek Islands including Crete * ''Satureja subspicata'' Bartl. ex Vis. – Austria, Yugoslavia, Albania, Bulgaria, Italy * ''Satureja taurica'' Velen. – Crimea * ''Satureja thymbra'' L. – Libya, southeastern Europe from Sardinia to Turkey; Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestine * ''Satureja thymbrifolia'' Hedge & Feinbrun – Israel, Saudi Arabia * ''Satureja visianii'' Šilic. – Yugoslavia * ''Satureja wiedemanniana'' (Avé-Lall.) Velen. – Turkey

Formerly in ''Satureja''

* Browne's savory, ''Clinopodium brownei'' (as ''Satureja brownei'') * San Miguel Savory, ''Clinopodium chandleri'' (as ''Satureja chandleri'') * Large-flowered calamint, ''Clinopodium grandiflorum'' (as ''Satureja grandiflora'') * Stone mint, ''Cunila mariana'' (as ''Satureja origanoides'') * ''Satureja acinos'' (L.) Scheele = ''Clinopodium acinos'' (L.) Kuntze * ''Satureja alpina'' (L.) Scheele = ''Clinopodium alpinum'' (L.) Kuntze * ''Satureja biflora'' (Buch.-Ham. ex D.Don) Benth = ''Micromeria biflora'' (Buch.-Ham. ex D.Don) Benth * ''Satureja gilliesii'' (Graham) Briq. = ''Clinopodium chilense'' (Benth.) Govaerts * ''Satureja mexicana'' (Benth.) Briq. = ''Clinopodium mexicanum'' (Benth.) Govaerts * ''Satureja multiflora'' (Ruiz & Pav.) Briq. – Chilean shrub mint = ''Clinopodium multiflorum'' (Ruiz & Pav.) Kuntze * ''Satureja palmeri'' (A.Gray) Briq. (believed extinct; rediscovered 2001) = ''Clinopodium palmeri'' (A.Gray) Kuntze * ''Satureja paradoxa'' (Vatke) Engl. ex Seybold = ''Clinopodium paradoxum'' (Vatke) Ryding * ''Satureja robusta'' (Hook.f) Brenan = ''Clinopodium robustum'' (Hook.f) Ryding * ''Satureja viminea'' L. – serpentine savory = ''Clinopodium vimineum'' (L.) Kuntze * ''Satureja vulgaris'' (L.) Fritschl = ''Clinopodium vulgare'' L. * ''Satureja vernayana'' Brenan = ''Clinopodium vernayanum'' (Brenan) Ryding * ''Satureja douglasii'' (Benth.) Briq. – yerba buena (syn. ''S. chamissonis'') = ''Micromeria douglasii'' Benth

Etymology

The etymology of the Latin word "satureia" is unclear. Speculation that it is related to ''saturare'',F. E. J. Valpy, ''An Etymological Dictionary of the Latin Language'', 1828, p. 542. to ''satyr'', or to za'atar is not well supported. The ancient Hebrew name is Tzatrah צתרה.

Notes

External links

* {{Authority control Flora of Kurdistan Flora of the Mediterranean basin Herbs Lamiaceae Lamiaceae genera Mediterranean cuisine Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus