Articles of category "Oregano"

There are more than a dozen of oregano species. All their leaves and flowering tops possess mildly mint flavor. The most popular of the species is Origanum vulgare, which is called oregano or oreganum in Europe. It is one of the member's of the mint family. Oregano leaves provide a mild spicy taste thanks to which the plant is widely used in different recipes, such as pizza toppings and pasta salads. Besides, the plant produces concentrated aromatic oil, possessing healing properties.

Wild oregano has been used as a therapeutic herb since ancient times. About 5,000 years ago the Babylonians used it as a remedy for curing lung and heart diseases, for healing wounds and venomous bites. Wild oregano was a favorite medicinal herb of the ancient Greeks who used it for curing wounds, various infections, lung and heart diseases. They called it "oroganos" which means "delight of the mountains". Modern Greek researches proved the germicide nature of the plant. In 1995, scientists at the University of Thessoloniki found out that wild oregano oil was able to sterilize septic water, which was also proved by researches held at Cornell University. The research showed that wild oregano was one of the few plants that killed all germs tested.