01.
A Bit of Botany
a little botanical information on rosemary
description
Rosmarinus officinalis, which is known commonly as rosemary, is a woody, perennial
herb of the mint family Lamiaceae.
Rosemary is an aromatic evergreen shrub
with leaves similar in appearance to hemlock needles. The plant can grow in forms that range from upright to
trailing. When upright, rosemary can reach 5 feet (1.5 m) in height, or more rarely up to 6 or 7 feet (2m).
Rosemary's leaves are evergreen, and measure 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) in length and just 2–5 mm broad.
The leaves have green topsides and are white below; they have short, dense, woolly hair.
In temperate climates, rosemary flowers during spring and summer, however in warm climates rosemary can bloom continuously.
Rosemary flowers can be white, pink, purple, or deep blue.
common names & nomenclature
The name rosemary derives from ros and marinus, Latin for "dew" and "sea" respectively, or collectively "dew of the sea".
Also known as:
rosemary, polar plant, compass-weed, compass plant, rosmarinus coronarium