Flora of New Zealand Series

calamint

Rhizomatous herb; stems to c. 60 cm long, much-branched, erect or spreading, hairy, often pilose. Middle and upper stem lvs shortly petiolate. Lamina 6-20 × 4-13 mm, ovate, usually densely hairy, at least on veins, minutely glandular-punctate beneath, sometimes nearly glabrous above, entire or obscurely crenate-serrate. Infl. lax with prominent peduncles and pedicels. Bracts < lvs. Calyx 4-6 mm long, densely clothed in short hairs on nerves and teeth, dotted with oil globules, with prominent white hair tuft protruding from throat; teeth < tube, subulate; lower tooth c. 1.5 mm long. Corolla 7-10 mm long, hairy and with oil globules outside, pale mauve or bluish mauve; lower lip ± recurved, crenate, with few darker spots; upper lip emarginate. Style exserted, bluish mauve. Nutlets c. 1 mm diam., subglobular or broad-ellipsoid, minutely reticulate.

N.: only known in 1 area, locally well-established between Hastings and Napier.

Europe, N. Africa, S.W. Asia 1944

Pastures.

FL Feb.

Calamint or lesser calamint is sometimes cultivated by culinary herb specialists. This sp. has often been included in the genus Satureja L. as S. nepeta (L.) Scheele and was first recorded in N.Z. as S. calamintha (L.) Scheele. Spp. still placed in Satureja are cultivated widely in N.Z., particularly the perennial S. montana L. and annual S. hortensis L., winter savory and summer savory respectively. S. hortensis reproduces freely from seed and has been reported wild; however, this record is not substantiated by a specimen.