Wild Marjoram (Origanum vulgare) is a native brittish plant that grows to about 60cm. Wild Marjoram begins life as a dark purple bud, which when opened, shows purple, pink or on occasions white bunches of thyme like flowers arranged in clusters. Wild Marjoram is a tall herbaceous, sweetly scented plant which has long, oval shaped leaves on its reddish coloured stem which also have a slightly sweet scent.
Wild marjoram is typically found in dry infertile and calcareous soils, or even found in habitats such as grasslands, hedge banks, road vergers and scrubland, but it does not do well in pastures as it is vulverable to grazing animals, as it is reliant on its seed reproduction as it has limited means of spread. Although it can sometimes be lost on non disturbed sites due to taller more aggressive growing plants, Wild Marjoram does produce a large amount of seeds which can remain dormant in the soil, this allows them to reappear following a fire or a natural disturbance to the area. The long roots with numerous root hairs allow Wild marjoram plants to exploit subsoil water in periods of drought and its flowers are particulary popular with butterflies.
Height: Up to 60cm
Flowering Time: July to September
Preferred Conditions: Wild Marjoram favours more calcareous soils and will often be found on hedge banks and road verges.
