Photo: Bramley, G.

Photo: Bramley, G.

Subfamily

VII. Subfam. Nepetoideae (Dumort.) Luerss. (1882).

VII. 2. Tribe Mentheae Dumort. (1827).

VII. 2. B. Subtribe Menthinae (Dumort.) Endl. (1838).

Description

Perennial or annual herbs or subshrubs, aromatic; leaves entire or scarcely toothed, usually conduplicate, glandular-punctate, young leaves in axillary fascicles; inflorescence of 2-many-flowered axillary verticillasters or cymes; bracts usually leaf-like; bracteoles inconspicuous; calyx 2-lipped or almost actinomorphic, campanulate, 10-13-nerved, rarely appearing 5-nerved, 5-lobed (3/2), posterior lobes straight to upcurved, anterior lobes longer, calyx-throat bearded; corolla 2-lipped, 4-lobed, white, lilac, pink or pale-purple; posterior lobe concave, ± rounded, emarginate, anterior lip with median lobe oblong, spreading, tube ± cylindrical, straight; stamens 4, scarcely didynamous or anterior pair longer, filaments exserted, curved; thecae ± divaricate or parallel, ellipsoidal, confluent; disc subequal; stigma-lobes subequal; nutlets ovoid, sometimes elongate or apiculate, smooth or muricate, sometimes hairy.  2n = 30.  About 38 species< /STRONG > in the Mediterranean Region, N Africa: Morocco and Libya, Caucasus and W Asia: Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq. Aromatic and medicinal plants used as flavouring, source of essential oils and ornamental. Divided into two sections: Satureja and Salzmannia G. López following López (1981).

Distribution

Native to:

11 Middle Europe
12 Southwestern Europe
13 Southeastern Europe
14 Eastern Europe
20 Northern Africa
21 Macaronesia
22 West Tropical Africa
23 West-Central Tropical Africa
24 Northeast Tropical Africa
25 East Tropical Africa
26 South Tropical Africa
27 Southern Africa
30 Siberia
32 Middle Asia
33 Caucasus
34 Western Asia
35 Arabian Peninsula
36 China
38 Eastern Asia
40 Indian Subcontinent
41 Indo-China
42 Malesia
43 Papuasia
70 Subarctic America
71 Western Canada
72 Eastern Canada
73 Northwestern U.S.A.
74 North-Central U.S.A.
75 Northeastern U.S.A.
76 Southwestern U.S.A.
77 South-Central U.S.A.
78 Southeastern U.S.A.
79 Mexico
80 Central America
81 Caribbean
82 Northern South America
83 Western South America
84 Brazil
85 Southern South America

Introduced to:

10 Northern Europe

Synonyms

Thymbra Mill., Gard. Dict. Abr. ed. 4 (1754), nom. illeg.

Saturiastrum Fourr., Ann. Soc. Linn. Lyon, n.s., 17: 133 (1869).

Euhesperida Brullo & Furnari, Webbia 34: 433 (1979).

Argantoniella G.López & R.Morales, Anales Jard. Bot. Madrid 61: 25 (2004).

Publication