Winter Savory Satureja montana

LATIN NAME: Satureja montana

COMMON NAME: Winter Savory

The winter savory spreads its narrow, leathery, dark-green leaves and the small, white flowers, and the whole plant carries the fine, warm, peppery scent. The low, bushy, evergreen, perennial herb carries the narrow, lance-shaped, leathery, glossy, dark-green leaves on the woody, branching stems and the small, white or pale-lilac, two-lipped flowers in the small, whorled clusters through the late summer, one of the fine, generous sights of the herb garden, drawing the bees. The leaves have a very long record as the fine, warm, peppery herb of the old kitchens, and the plant is a fine, historic presence of the herb garden. It is a plant of the open, sunny, sharp-draining ground.

Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology

The winter savory is a historic subject of the plant science, and the narrow leaves keep showing up in the work on the evergreen herbs. The chemistry of the narrow, lance-shaped, leathery leaves, which carry the fine, warm, peppery oils of the old kitchens, has been studied at length, and it keeps appearing in the studies of the evergreen herbs, the peppery leaves and the members of the mint family. The whorled clusters and the woody habit have also made it a fine study plant, and the winter savory is a regular subject of the work on the narrow leaves of the dry world.

Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications

The winter savory is a fine, generous herb of the herb garden and the study collection. The narrow, lance-shaped, leathery, glossy, dark-green leaves have a very long record as the fine, warm, peppery herb of the old kitchens, the fresh leaves coming to the beans, the stews, the stuffings and the vinegars of the old tables, while the small, white or pale-lilac, two-lipped flowers open in the small, whorled clusters through the late summer, drawing the bees. It is one of the fine choices for the herb garden, the rock bed and the study collection, and it has been written about in the culinary and the botanical papers for the peppery leaves and the very long history. It is a fine, generous herb of the open, sunny, sharp-draining garden.

Give the young plants the sharp-draining soil and the open, sunny spot, and the peppery leaves will fill the late summer.

To grow the winter savory from seed, sow the small, brown seeds just below the surface of the deep pot of fine, sandy soil, with a light press, keep the pot in a bright, open spot and water gently, then set the young plants out in the open ground. The seedlings appear within a couple of weeks and grow on steadily. With the sun and the sharp-draining ground, the peppery leaves will fill the late summer.

Satureja montana, winter savory, brings lasting value to sunny herb gardens. Its compact semi‑woody bushes deliver spicy‑aromatic foliage for kitchen use, while small pale summer blossoms draw bees and other helpful pollinators across the growing months. Raising plants from seed produces well‑balanced individuals that gradually harden to local sun and soil conditions, building resilient frameworks for many seasons of harvest.

Uses: Culinary/Medicinal/Aromatic

it makes an attractive border plant for any culinary herb garden. It requires six hours of sun a day in soil that drains well. Winter savory is now little used, but for hundreds of years both it and Summer savory have been grown and used, virtually side by side. Both have strong spicy flavour.