Myrtle
StarMyrtus communis
Synonyms: Myrtus communis var. camboanus, Myrtus communis var. eugeniae, Myrtus communis var. rodesii, Myrtus communis var. gallachi, Myrtus communis var. morawieskiana, Myrtus communis var. microphylla, Myrtus communis var. adrianii, Myrtus communis var. jonssetii, Myrtus communis f. baetica, Myrtus communis var. latifolia, Myrtus communis var. theodori, Myrtus communis var. gausseni, Myrtus communis f. tarentinus, Myrtus communis var. gibertii, Myrtus communis var. soleri, Myrtus communis f. belgica, Myrtus communis var. macrocarpa, Myrtus communis var. bercialis, Myrtus communis var. melanocarpa, Myrtus communis var. balearicus, Myrtus communis subsp. lusitanica, Myrtus communis var. baui, Myrtus communis f. lusitanica
Western Herbalism Properties
Gallery
Botanical Description
Myrtus communis, the common myrtle, is an evergreen aromatic shrub of the Myrtaceae family native to the Mediterranean basin and parts of western Asia. It typically forms a dense, rounded bush two to four metres tall, occasionally a small tree, with reddish-brown, peeling bark on older stems. The leaves are opposite, ovate-lanceolate, three to five centimetres long, leathery, glossy dark green, and dotted with translucent oil glands that release a sweet, balsamic fragrance when crushed. In summer, solitary white flowers about two centimetres across appear in the leaf axils, each with five petals surrounding a prominent boss of long white stamens. These mature into ovoid blue-black berries about a centimetre long, edible and used as a spice. The plant favours warm, sunny, well-drained limestone slopes.
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