Thyme is a sun-loving herb, at its aromatic best when growing wild on the sun-baked hills around the Mediterranean. Different species include lemon thyme Thymus citriodorus, and caraway thyme T. herba-barona. The English wild thyme refe...
* Please Note: This information is based partly on Traditional Medicine which uses natural materials to support health. This information has not been evaluated or approved by the FDA. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor.
Description
Thyme is a sun-loving herb, at its aromatic best when growing wild on the sun-baked hills around the Mediterranean. Different species include lemon thyme Thymus citriodorus, and caraway thyme T. herba-barona. The English wild thyme referred to by Shakespeare is T. drucei.
History
Thyme is one of the oldest recorded culinary herbs, probably in use well before the time of the ancient Greeks. The Romans took it to Britain as part of their culinary armory. In his herbal, Nicholas Culpeper credits it with a singular usefulness: "An infusion of the leaves," he has written, "removes the headache occasioned by inebriation."
Characteristics
Thyme is a low-growing sub-shrub that can become untidily woody and straggly. It can reach a height and spread of about 8 inches. The leaves are very small, only about 1/4 inch long; according to type, they may be green, gray-green, yellow, or variegated. The flowers, which cover the plant from early summer, are borne in clusters at the tips of the shoots.
Growing Tips
Thyme thrives on poor, stony soil as long as it is planted in full sun. It is grown from tip cuttings taken in summer, or by layering stems. It will need protection in a harsh winter. Wild creeping thyme, L. pulegioides, is planted as a flowering lawn.
How to Use
Thyme is traditionally used with parsley in stuffings for chicken and pork, and, with the addition of a bay leaf, in bouquet garni . It is especially good with oil in marinades, and with vegetables such as zucchini, eggplant, and tomatoes.
Use the leaves to make astringent infusions and strongly perfumed herbal oils for soothing body rubs. Thyme is also antiseptic and deodorizing and has anti-dandruff and conditioning properties for the hair. The pungent essential oil is useful in combating acne.
Taken internally for coughs and colds or more serious problems such as bronchitis and asthma, the mucous clearing ability of thyme makes it the appropriate remedy where catarrh is a problem.
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Directions
Take 1 to 2 capsules up to three times daily at mealtime with a glass of water.
Ingredients
Thyme Leaf - 450 mg
Cautions
Avoid therapeutic doses of thyme and thyme oil in any form during pregnancy because the herb is a uterine stimulant.
Additional Information
Herb-Xtra is committed to the manufacture of high quality, standardized and guaranteed natural health products and supplements.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Products are intended to support general well being and are not intended to treat, diagnose, mitigate, prevent, or cure any condition or disease. If conditions persist, please seek advice from your medical doctor. The essence of the current American rule on Traditional Uses is, as stated by FTC, "Claims based on historical or traditional use should be substantiated by confirming scientific evidence, or should be presented in such a way that consumers understand that the sole basis for the claim is a history of use of the product for a particular purpose."
