Joyful gift of the goddess of love: food for brains bees and butterflies!

Wild marjoram is the common English name for the Italian culinary herb oregano. It’s delicious fresh or dried, with tomatoes, such as on pizza or in soups and salads.

It’s not just tasty though: its essential oils benefit gut health by countering inflammation, inhibiting unhelpful bacteria and fungi, and enhancing populations of helpful gut bacteria such as Ruminococcus, which produce butyrate, a fatty acid that promotes brain health.

The name ‘oregano’ means ‘joy of the mountain’. Greek mythology has Aphrodite, goddess of love, give the plant to newlyweds, bringing them joy and peace.

Wild marjoram likes to grow on chalk, limestone, and other well-drained soils. It’s especially adapted to grow after fires. Its seeds last a long time in the soil, apparently waiting for the ground to be cleared, by fire or other disturbance. The flowers feed butterflies and bees, whilst the leaves are food to caterpillars of the rare large blue butterfly.