''Salvia hierosolymitana'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family Lamiaceae. It is a herbaceous perennial commonly called Jerusalem salvia or Jerusalem sage that is native to the eastern Mediterranean, with populations in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

, Syria, and the

West Bank The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

. It typically grows in open fields, rocky soils, and among low-growing native shrubs. It was first described in 1853 by botanist

Pierre Edmond Boissier Pierre Edmond Boissier (25 May 1810 Geneva – 25 September 1885 Valeyres-sous-Rances) was a Swiss prominent botanist, explorer and mathematician. He was the son of Jacques Boissier (1784-1857) and Caroline Butini (1786-1836), daughter of Pie ...

, with the epithet "''hierosolymitana''" referring to "royal, sacred Jerusalem". It forms a mound of basal leaves that spreads to 2 ft, and slightly less in height. The ovate mid-green leaves are evergreen, lightly covered with hairs, and with a scalloped margin, growing 8–10 in long with prominent veining underneath. The 1 in or smaller flowers are a wine-red color, growing in widely spaced whorls, with 2-6 flowers per whorl. The lower lip is white, with wine-red spotting. The calyces are pea-green with red veins and bracts edged in red. The square stem of the 1 ft long inflorescences are also edged in red. Unlike many salvias, there is no odor when the leaves are crushed, and there is no known medicinal use of this plant. In

Israeli cuisine Israeli cuisine ( he, המטבח הישראלי ) comprises both local dishes and dishes brought to Israel by Jews from the Diaspora. Since before the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, and particularly since the late 1970s, an Israel ...

, the leaves are being stuffed with meat and rice then cooked with lamb riblets.

References

External links

UBC Botanical Garden page
hierosolymitana Taxa named by Pierre Edmond Boissier {{Salvia-stub