# What herb is this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 13, 2007, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566 "2007-10-13T07:46:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![istara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e79b87/32.png) [@istara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/istara)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/1 "2007-10-13T07:46:43Z")
A friend was sold this herb as sage, but it doesn’t look quite like sage as I know it. Perhaps it’s a particular variety? I remember sage as having more “silvery” velvety leaves. This herb has a woody stem. It came out a little more purple in the image than it actually is. [**Click for herb picture**](http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/4003/herbal8.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/2 "2007-10-13T13:13:53Z")
That looks a lot like oregano. Some idea of the size of the leaves might aid identification. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/3 "2007-10-13T14:19:18Z")
Looks a bit like a variety of [basil.](http://www.gardenguides.com/plants/info/herbs/basil.asp) ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/4 "2007-10-13T14:33:24Z")
Not sage. Color’s not right (to “bright”) and sage leaves are usually long ovals, not spades. Maybe [pineapple sage](http://img.hgtv.com/HGTV/2005/05/27/gby1013_1i_e.jpg)? ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/5 "2007-10-13T14:36:03Z")
What does it smell like? Crush a leaf and get a good whiff. What does it taste like? ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/6 "2007-10-13T15:18:43Z")
If it wasn’t purple I’d say pineapple sage; but that’s easily identifiable by the smell. It definitely smells like pineapple. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/7 "2007-10-13T16:59:37Z")
It looks like it’s in the mint family. The purple is very common in the fall. I would also agree oregano is a possibility if those leaves are small. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/8 "2007-10-13T17:50:10Z")
[QUOTE=Contrapuntal] What does it smell like? Crush a leaf and get a good whiff. What does it taste like? [/QUOTE] [RW]Tastes like burning[/RW] ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/9 "2007-10-13T18:52:10Z")
Could be a form of sage (foliage varies, and not all sage leaves are aromatic). The buds don’t look right for mint. When the flowers open, it’ll be easier to tell. You could ask over [here](http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/herbs/) or in the sage forum. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/10 "2007-10-13T19:16:30Z")
Perhaps I’m the only one who saw that picture and thought of _The Riders Of The Purple Sage._ ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/11 "2007-10-13T20:11:21Z")
[QUOTE=AskNott] Perhaps I’m the only one who saw that picture and thought of _The Riders Of The Purple Sage._ [/QUOTE] That kind of sage (sagebrush) is from the genus Artemisia. Culinary and ornamental sages are from the genus Salvia. If I can’t identify the plant, at least I can supply a annoying nitpick. ---
**Author:** ![istara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e79b87/32.png) [@istara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/istara)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/12 "2007-10-13T23:22:42Z")
Thanks guys! I think the leaves are a bit too big for oregano, but I will check, and I will also post on that forum. I should mention that the herb was bought in Australia (though I don’t think it is an Australian native plant). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2007, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/13 "2007-10-13T23:34:42Z")
If this is something you just found growing, it might not be a common culinary herb at all - it certainly looks like it’s a member of the labiatae, but as well as the sages, mints and oreganos, there are a bunch of other genera that look fairly similar and might even be aromatic (although not always pleasantly so), but aren’t commonly grown as culinary herbs. Bugle (Ajuga), for example. ---
**Author:** ![Gymnopithys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@Gymnopithys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gymnopithys)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2007, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/14 "2007-10-15T17:24:54Z")
[QUOTE=istara] Thanks guys! I think the leaves are a bit too big for oregano, but I will check, and I will also post on that forum. I should mention that the herb was bought in Australia (though I don’t think it is an Australian native plant). [/QUOTE] I can tell you what it is not 🙂 It’s not basil It’s not oregano It’s not the garden sage (Salvia officinalis) It’s probably the whorled clary (Salvia verticillata), also a kind of sage; said to have a foetid scent. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2007, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/15 "2007-10-15T17:31:25Z")
What’s the \*shape \*of the stem? Mints have a square stem (almost all of them, anyway), so that would rule in or out a lot of options right there. So far, I agree with \*\*Gymnopithys \*\*on what it’s _not_, anyway. But it’s also not whorled clary - the leaves are the wrong shape and the flowers don’t bud like that. [Whorled clary](http://images.google.com/images?q=whorled+clary&ie=UTF-8&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi) ---
**Author:** ![Vimp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vimp/32/4186_2.png) [@Vimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vimp)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2007, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/16 "2007-10-15T22:07:39Z")
Could it possibly be [borage](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borage)? ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2007, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/17 "2007-10-15T22:36:47Z")
It really looks like a mint or basil to me, not any sort of salvia/sage. The budding inflorescence is more like basil/mint. Perhaps [Thai basil](http://www.dkimages.com/discover/previews/799/25094312.JPG), or a [purple flowering mint](http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/pictures/ment_14.jpg). A smell test will tell the difference. The mint will have a definite, umm, minty aroma, and the basil will also be quite aromatic, Thai basil having some camphory tones in it. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2007, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/18 "2007-10-15T23:39:13Z")
[Here’s](http://www.backyardnature.net/fl_mints.htm) something about identifying mints. I thought maybe [pennyroyal](http://www.herbalfire.com/images/pennyroyal.jpg) but it seems to have sparser leaves. This is [chocolate mint](http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/images/items/350x350/HERB_Chocolate_Mint.jpg), the leaves look about right, but not as intensely green. Can’t see if there’s a fuzzy bit in there. This is [wild mint](http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=46561&rendTypeId=4). ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2007, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/19 "2007-10-16T05:36:12Z")
[QUOTE=WhyNot] What’s the \*shape \*of the stem? Mints have a square stem (almost all of them, anyway), so that would rule in or out a lot of options right there. [/QUOTE] Actually, most if not all members of the plant family Labiatae have a square stem, not just the Mint-genus. You have to feel in the middle of the stem to check; near the top the stem can be so swollen with sap it feels more roundish then square. And the lower parts can have woodified (if that is even a word 🙂 ) and feel roundish as well, like Lavender and Rosemary. So try this years’ stems, still green and roll 'm between your fingertips; if they are square to the touch, 95% chance it’s a member of the Labiatae family. **Istara** , we really have to know how it smells to be more definitive. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2007, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566/20 "2007-10-16T05:46:08Z")
What herb is this? **Gymnopithys** > [@](#): > > I can tell you what it is not > > It’s not basil > It’s not oregano > It’s not the garden sage (Salvia officinalis) and I’d guess that it is _not_ Herb Alpert either. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-herb-is-this/422566.md?page=2)