MELISSA OFFICINALIS

Family and Genus:- See- LABIATAE

Common Names:- Lemon balm

Homotypic Synonyms:- Faucibarba officinalis, Mutelia officinalis, Thymus

melissa.

Meaning:- Melissa (Gr) Honeybee. Named after the mythological nymph who kept

bees.

Officinalis (L) Official medicine.

General description:- Perennial herbs. Lemon-scented.

Stems:-

1) 20-90 cm, erect, branched, shortly glandular-puberulent, and with sparse or

dense, long, patent, eglandular hairs, or glabrescent.

Leaves:-

1) 2-9 x 1·5-7 cm, glabrescent, or sparsely hairy above, glandular-puberulent and

more or less sparsely hairy beneath.

2) Upper cauline, and floral leaves, at least more or less cuneate at the base.

Flowers:-

1) Verticillasters, 4- to 12-flowered.

2) Bracteoles, 2-5 mm, ovate to linear, entire.

3) Calyx, 7-9 mm, with long, patent, eglandular and short glandular hairs.

a) teeth of lower lip lanceolate-triangular.

4) Corolla, 8-15 mm, pale yellow, becoming white or pinkish.

Fruit:-

1) Nutlets, 1·5-2 mm.

Click here for a glossary of terms used.

Habitat:- Damp Scrub, streambanks, gorges, olive groves and ruderal habitats. 0-

1200 m.

Distribution:- Widespread in the Mediterranean area and SW Asia. fairly

widespread across Crete, but not too common. Introduced.

Flowering time:- Apr-July.

Photos by:- Fotis Samaritakis