''Teucrium chamaedrys'', the wall germander, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...

native to the Mediterranean regions of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

, and the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

as far as

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref>Dobignard, A. & Chatelain, C. (2012). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 4: 1-431. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève. It was historically used as a

medicinal herb Medicinal plants, also called medicinal herbs, have been discovered and used in traditional medicine practices since prehistoric times. Plants synthesize hundreds of chemical compounds for various functions, including defense and protection ag ...

for the treatment of

gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intensit ...

and sometimes as a component of Venice treacle. It’s also used as an ornamental.

Subspecies

# ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''albarracinii'' (Pau) Rech.f. - France, Spain # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''algeriense'' Rech.f. - Algeria # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''chamaedrys'' - central + southern Europe, Caucasus, Turkey, Iran # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''germanicum'' (F.Herm.) Rech.f. - France, Germany # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''gracile'' (Batt.) Rech.f. - Algeria, Morocco # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''lydium'' O.Schwarz - Greece, Turkey # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' var. ''multinodum'' Bordz. - Caucasus # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''nuchense'' (K.Koch) Rech.f. - Caucasus # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''olympicum'' Rech.f. - Greece # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''pectinatum'' Rech.f. - France, Italy # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''pinnatifidum'' (Sennen) Rech.f. - France, Spain # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''sinuatum'' (Celak.) Rech.f. - Iran, Iraq, Turkey # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''syspirense'' (K.Koch) Rech.f. - Crimea, Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''tauricola'' Rech.f. - Turkey, Syria # ''Teucrium chamaedrys'' subsp. ''trapezunticum'' Rech.f. - Caucasus, Turkey

Appearance

Wall germander is a creeping evergreen perennial 6–18 inches tall. Its scalloped, opposite leaves are 0.5–1.5 inches long, dark green, and shiny. In late summer, tubular flowers grow in whorls from the leaf axils.

Cultivation

Wall germander can be grown in USDA Zones 5–10. It may be propagated by vegetative cuttings or by the division of established clumps.

Gallery

File:TeucriumChamaedrys.jpg, Plants File:Lamiaceae - Teucrium chamaedrys-1.JPG, Inflorescence File:Teucrium chamaedrys 290807.jpg, Flowers File:Lamiaceae - Teucrium chamaedrys-2.JPG, Close-up File:Lamiaceae - Teucrium chamaedrys.JPG, Leaves

References

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External links

''Teucrium chamaedrys'', Missouri Botanical Garden

''Teucrium chamaedrys'', Plants for a Future database

chamaedrys Plants described in 1753 Flora of North Africa Flora of Western Asia Flora of Europe Garden plants Medicinal plants Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Lamiaceae-stub