| Salvia sclarea | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Asterids |
| Order: | Lamiales |
| Family: | Lamiaceae |
| Genus: | Salvia |
| Species: | S. sclarea |
| Binomial name | |
| Salvia sclarea L. |
|
Salvia sclarea, clary, or clary sage, is a biennial herb in the genus Salvia which is native to the region from Central Asia to the north Mediterranean. [1]
Growth
At maturity it reaches 1 m in height and has opposing, woolly-texture leaves that are 10-20 cm long and 6-12 cm broad. Its flowers appear in several clusters of 2-6 on the stem, are 2.5-3.5 cm long, and are white, pink, or pale purple in color. Clary has a strong and unusual odour that is considered unpleasant by some and very attractive to others.
Today it is mostly grown in England, France, and southern Russia for the perfume industry.[citation needed]
Uses
The distilled essential oil is occasionally found in specialty stores and scent shops. This odor is sometimes described as "sweaty", spicy, or "hay-like".
Clary seeds have a mucilaginous coat, which is why some old herbals recommended placing a seed into the eye of someone with a foreign object in it so that it could adhere to the object and make it easy to remove.[citation needed]
The leaves have also been used as a vegetable.
In ales, clary was used as a flavoring before the use of hops became common. Additionally it has been used to flavor wine, notably muscatel, and some tobacco products.
Gallery
 Clusters of clary flowers |
- ^ Clebsch: the New Book of Salvias
- Huxley, A; et al., (Eds) (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan.
- German: Wikipedia: Muskatellersalbei
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