Oregano

**Sowing:** Oregano can be direct-sown or transplanted, spaced roughly 15 to 18 inches apart, and prefers full sun with well-drained, neutral-to-alkaline soil in a pH range of about 6 to 9; it is intolerant of acidic, poorly drained, or hot, humid conditions.

**Watering and feeding:** The plant is drought tolerant and needs little water; when the soil dries out it should be watered slowly, ideally in the morning, rather than kept consistently moist.

**Ongoing care:** Removing spent flowers and dead foliage encourages new growth, and clumps benefit from division after about three years to maintain vigor and flavor; propagation is also possible from cuttings.

Oregano generally has few serious pest or disease problems. Aphids, leaf miners, and spider mites may appear, and in wet or poorly drained soil the plant is prone to root rot or stem rot, so growers are advised to watch for fungal disease and shield the plant from excess winter moisture.

Leaves are picked just before the plant comes into flower, when their flavor is considered strongest, and are used either fresh or dried for later use.

**Culinary:** Oregano leaves are used to flavor tomato sauces, pizza, egg dishes, soups, stews, dips, vinegar, vegetable dishes, salads, and grilled meats, and are most often used dried rather than fresh.

**Ornamental:** The plant is grown in herb gardens, cottage gardens, and rock gardens, and serves as a groundcover, border planting, or container plant, with its blooms attracting bees and butterflies.

**Traditional and historical use:** Ancient Greek and Roman practice applied oregano leaves to skin sores and aching muscles and used the herb as an antiseptic, while the Greek physician Hippocrates is recorded as using it for respiratory and gastrointestinal complaints; medieval Europeans chewed the leaves for rheumatism, toothache, indigestion, and cough. In Mexico, leaves and flowers have been brewed as a tea associated with menstruation, sore throat, and bronchitis, and oregano has more broadly been used in folk practice as an aid for colds, fevers, and indigestion.

Oregano is native to Europe, Central Asia, the Mediterranean, and North Africa, where it grows wild in mountain habitats that gave the genus its name, meaning roughly "beauty" or "joy of the mountain." It reached the United States after World War II, when returning soldiers who had enjoyed its taste on pizza in Italy created a surge in demand, and the plant has since naturalized widely across the temperate Northern Hemisphere, including the United States and Mexico.