''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 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 Cladistics ( ; from Ancient Greek 'branch') is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is ...

era of botany, ''Satureja'' was redefined to a narrower

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

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 or

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

. They are low-growing

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 ...

s and

subshrub A subshrub (Latin ''suffrutex'') or undershrub is either a small shrub (e.g. prostrate shrubs) or a perennial that is largely herbaceous but slightly woody at the base (e.g. garden pink and florist's chrysanthemum). The term is often interch ...

s, reaching heights of . 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, ...

are long, with

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s forming in whorls on the stem, white to pale pink-violet.

Ecology and cultivation

''Satureja'' species are food plants for the

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organ ...

(

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

and

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

s). 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 Summer savory (''Satureja hortensis'') is among the best known of the Satureja, savory genus. It is an annual, but otherwise is similar in use and flavor to the perennial winter savory. It is used more often than winter savory, which has a sligh ...

(''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,

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

, Georgian, Bulgarian and

Italian cuisine Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine#CITEREFDavid1988, David 1988, Introduction, pp. 101–103 consisting of the ingredients, recipes, and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Ancient Roman cuisine, Roman times, and later spread ...

, particularly when cooking beans. It is also used to season the traditional

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

stew known as '. The modern spice mixture Herbes de Provence has savory as one of the principal ingredients. In

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, savory is often incorporated as a flavoring in

black tea Black tea (also literally translated as red tea from various East Asian languages) is a type of tea that is more tea processing, oxidized than oolong, yellow tea, yellow, white tea, white, and green tea, green teas. Black tea is generally st ...

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 '' 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 ''Satureja'' is a genus of aromatic plants of the family (biology), family Lamiaceae, related to rosemary and thyme. It is native to Southern Europe, southern and southeastern Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Historically, ...

'' 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 ''Satureja montana'' (winter savory or mountain savory), is a perennial, semi-evergreen herb in the family Lamiaceae, native to warm temperate regions of southern Europe, the Mediterranean, and Africa. It has dark green leaves and summer flowers ...

'' 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 ''Satureja thymbra'', commonly known as savory of Crete, whorled savory, pink savory, and Roman hyssop (Arabic Language, Arabic: ''za'atar rumi''; ''za'atar franji''), is a perennial-green dwarf shrub of the family (biology), family Lamiaceae, ha ...

'' 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 Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...

; 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 In Greek mythology, a satyr (, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( ), and sileni (plural), is a male List of nature deities, nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, exaggerated erection. ...

'', 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