Salvia dominica, Salvia graveolens, Dominican Sage,
מרווה ריחנית
 
Scientific name:  Salvia dominica L.
Synonym name:  Salvia graveolens Vahl
Common name:  Dominican Sage
Hebrew name:   מרווה ריחנית
Family:  Labiatae / Lamiaceae, שפתניים

Το Ισραήλ αγριολούλουδα και ενδημικά φυτά
Date Picture Taken: February 19, 2006

 
Life form:  Chamaephyte, semi-shrub
Leaves:  Opposite, entire, dentate or serrate
Flowers:  White
Flowering Period:   February, March, April, May
Habitat:   Batha, Phrygana
Distribution:   The Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Deserts and extreme deserts
Chorotype:   Mediterranean
Summer shedding:  Perenating

Salvia dominica, Salvia graveolens, Dominican Sage, מרווה ריחנית
Date Picture Taken: April 8, 2007


Derivation of the botanical name:
Salvia, Latin salvere, to save, referring to the long-believed healing properties of salvia. Pliny the Elder was the first known to use the Latin name salvia.
dominica, island of Dominica, which means "belonging to the Lord."
graveolens, strong smelling; referring to the fragrant glands on the hairs covering the leaf, making it a more relevant epithet than dominica/
  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation Vahl is used to indicate Martin Henrichsen Vahl (1749 – 1804), a Danish-Norwegian botanist and zoologist.
In Israel the branched inflorescence of the Salvia dominica is one of the several salvias thought to have inspired the design of the menorah, or seven-branched candelabra.


Salvia dominica, Salvia graveolens, Dominican Sage, מרווה ריחנית
Date Picture Taken: March 12, 2009