By Claire Roos
Horticulture intern Claire Roos
discovers the surprising diversity of the widely cultivated Lamiaceae, or mint, family
Whenever I find myself weeding in a
garden my thoughts tend to wander from the absurdly mundane to the dramatically
profound. It was during one of these moments, while I was pulling out every
curmudgeonly weed I could find in the Alexandra Hicks Herb Knot Garden at
Matthaei, that an interesting observation occurred to me.
As I perused the
culinary beds, it struck me that although basil (genus Ocimum) and mint
(genus Mentha) have drastically different flavors, they belong to the
same family, the Lamiaceae family. The spark had then been lit, and I promptly
set out on an investigation. I soon discovered that not only were basil and
mint in the same family, but many common herbs belonged to the Lamiaceae family
as well, including sage (genus Salvia), rosemary (Rosmarinus
officinalis), thyme (Thymus vulgarus), marjoram/oregano (Origanum
majorana), savory (genus Satureja), lavender (Lavandula
angustifolia), bergamot/beebalm (genus Monarda), hyssop (Hyssopus
officinalis), and catnip (Nepeta cataria). How could it be that a
single plant family is responsible for such domination in human culinary
creations? At this point, I began my research on the mystery and magic of Lamiaceae.
The Lamiaceae family, commonly
referred to as the mint or deadnettle family, is a group of related flowering
plants characterized by its opposite leaves, square stems, and hypogynous
(growing on the undersurface of leaves) flowers. Members of this family are
known for their strong aromatic qualities. That being said, their aroma is not
the only trait that makes these plants stand out; they also exhibit remarkable
morphological diversity with species ranging from ephemeral herbs, to shrubs,
to long-lived trees. It is therefore unsurprising that Lamiaceae species are
cultivated by humans not only for their essential oils, but also for their
seeds (Salvia hispanica, commonly called chia), high quality lumber (Tectona
grandis, the teak tree), and tubers (Plectranthus rotundifolius, the
Chinese potato).
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| Chinese potato (Plectranthus rotundifolius) is a member of Lamiaceae, as is. . . |
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| teak (Tectona grandis). |
So, how did Lamiaceae species end up
being so popular and widely cultivated by humans? While I was unable to find a
specific answer, I think I’ve been able to piece together some major factors
for their success. To start, it turns out that Lamiaceae is presently the sixth
largest angiosperm family in the world (with more than 7,200 species total),
growing in all continents except Antarctica. Gathering from what I remember
from Intro to Biology, a phylum’s success is generally contingent on the degree
of diversity of the species that are classified under said phylum. We can
therefore make the assumption that even before human use of the plants, the
high diversity of species in the Lamiaceae family is a result of a particularly
vigorous genetic code. This combination of genetic diversity and widespread
distribution meant that humans already had a lot to work with when they started
selectively breeding plants for agricultural cultivation, allowing for a wide
array of cultivars to be produced by all different cultures worldwide.
Furthermore, while this may be
obvious enough, when cooks use herbs to spice up their cooking, they look for
plants that are particularly aromatic. As I mentioned previously, a common
characteristic of the Lamiaceae family is its strong essential oils, which are
perfect for adding flavor. In addition to that, the strong odors associated
with Lamiaceae also form terpenes, compounds that seem to be effective in
suppressing the growth and germination of surrounding plants. Talk about a
competitive advantage! And considering Lamiaceae’s easily identifiable
characteristics, I would guess that after having successfully consumed one
member of the Lamiaceae family, our ancestors were more likely to continue
experimenting with eating plants that looked similar to the ones they already
had proven safe. To top it off, Lamiaceae species are relatively easy to
propagate by cuttings and seed, facilitating the process of selective breeding.
The combined factors of having an already diverse wild gene pool, strong
essential oils, an impressive vitality, and ease of propagation argue for
Lamiaceae’s lasting presence in human culinary culture.
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| Claire Roos |
Claire Roos, from Ann Arbor, is entering her senior year majoring in Program in the Environment and Spanish. Claire is working as a horticulture intern this summer.
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