Myrica gale

Myrica gale
Myrica gale
Myrica gale foliage and immature fruit
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Myricaceae
Genus: Myrica
Species: M. gale
Binomial name
Myrica gale
L.
Synonyms

Gale palustris

Myrica gale is a species of flowering plant in the genus Myrica, native to northern and western Europe and parts of northern North America. It is a deciduous shrub growing to 1–2 m tall. Common names include Bog Myrtle and Sweet Gale. The leaves are spirally arranged, simple, 2–5 cm long, oblanceolate with a tapered base and broader tip, and a crinkled or finely toothed margin. The flowers are catkins, with male and female catkins on separate plants (dioecious). The fruit is a small drupe.

Male plant with catkins.

It typically grows in acidic peat bogs, and to cope with these difficult nitrogen-poor growing conditions, the roots have nitrogen-fixing actinobacteria which enable the plants to grow.

Contents

Uses

The foliage has a sweet resinous scent and is a traditional insect repellent, used by campers to keep biting insects out of tents. It is also a traditional ingredient of Royal Wedding bouquets and is used variously in perfumery and as a condiment.

In northwestern Europe (Germany, Belgium and Great Britain), it was much used in a mixture called gruit as a flavouring for beer from the Middle Ages to the 16th century, but it fell into disuse after hops had become widely available. In modern times, some brewers have revisited this historic technique. Danish brewery Thisted Bryghus produces Porse Guld, a strong beer flavoured with the plant. Beau's All Natural Brewing Company, of Vankleek Hill, ON, Canada, produces 'Bog Water', a seasonal strong ale made with sweet gale from Eastern Ontario.[1]

In Denmark and Sweden, the plant is commonly used to prepare home-flavoured snaps. This special flavouring is also produced commercially by Danish Distillers, and Reimersholm.

Boots chemist are planning to increase production of the plant in Scotland for use as an essential oil for treating sensitive skin and acne.[2] It is also marketed by Totally Herby of Scotland[3] as an insect repellent, and by The Highland Soap Company[4] as a soap.

In some native cultures in Eastern Canada, the plant has been used as a traditional remedy for stomach aches, fever, bronchial ailments and liver problems. In Scotland it has been traditionally used to ward off the dreaded midge. "The Creole Doctor," an 1886 article by Lafcadio Hearn, discusses the uses of the plant, known locally as "cirier batard," in Louisiana creole folk remedies.[5]

Sweet Gale can grow in a narrow band in the intertidal zone, especially if it has some logs, washed down into the estuary on which to establish itself. It is a favorite food of beavers, and low beaver dams can be found in the intertidal zone if sufficient sweet gale is present. The ponds thus formed are often completely submerged at high tide but retain water at low tide and provide deep enough water to provide a refuge for fish, including juvenile salmon where the water is too deep for predation by wading birds. Thus the presence of Sweet Gale can enhance salmon recruitment.[citation needed]

Cautions

Myrica gale is listed as an abortifacient and, therefore, should not be consumed by women who are, or might be, pregnant.[6][7]

References

  1. ^ Beau's All Natural Brewing Company
  2. ^ Scotland's bog myrtle to fuel second oil boom
  3. ^ Stop Bite - herbal Midge repellent spray
  4. ^ Bog Myrtle Soap
  5. ^ Lafcadio Hearn, "The Creole Doctor: Some Curiosities of Medicine in Louisiana." New York Tribune, January 3, 1886.
  6. ^ A Modern Herbal: Gale, Sweet
  7. ^ Myrica gale

External links


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Myrica Gale — Gale Gale, n. [AS. gagel, akin to D. gagel.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus {Myrica}, growing in wet places, and strongly resembling the bayberry. The sweet gale ({Myrica Gale}) is found both in Europe and in America. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Myrica gale —   Mirto de Bravante Myrica gale …   Wikipedia Español

  • Myrica gale — Piment royal Piment royal …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Myrica gale — Gagelstrauch Gagelstrauch (Myrica gale) Systematik Klasse: Dreifurchenpollen Zweikeimblättrige (Rosopsida) …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Myrica gale — pajūrinis sotvaras statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Sotvarinių šeimos dekoratyvinis, prieskoninis, vaistinis augalas (Myrica gale), paplitęs Azijoje, Europoje, Šiaurės Amerikoje. Naudojamas maisto priedams (kvėpikliams) gaminti, iš jo… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Myrica Gale — Sweet Sweet, a. [Compar. {Sweeter}; superl. {Sweetest}.] [OE. swete, swote, sote, AS. sw[=e]te; akin to OFries. sw[=e]te, OS. sw[=o]ti, D. zoet, G. s[ u]ss, OHG. suozi, Icel. s[ae]tr, s[oe]tr, Sw. s[ o]t, Dan. s[ o]d, Goth. suts, L. suavis, for… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Myrica gale var. tomentosa — pajūrinis sotvaras statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Sotvarinių šeimos dekoratyvinis, prieskoninis, vaistinis augalas (Myrica gale), paplitęs Azijoje, Europoje, Šiaurės Amerikoje. Naudojamas maisto priedams (kvėpikliams) gaminti, iš jo… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Myrica gale — noun bog shrub of north temperate zone having bitter tasting fragrant leaves • Syn: ↑sweet gale, ↑Scotch gale • Hypernyms: ↑shrub, ↑bush • Member Holonyms: ↑Myrica, ↑genus Myrica …   Useful english dictionary

  • Myrica gale — ID 55477 Symbol Key MYGA Common Name sweetgale Family Myricaceae Category Dicot Division Magnoliophyta US Nativity Native to U.S. US/NA Plant Yes State Distribution AK, CT, KY, MA, ME, MI, MN, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OR, PA, RI, TN, VT, WA, WI Growth… …   USDA Plant Characteristics

  • Myrica gale — noun A species of flowering plant, of the genus Myrica, native to Europe and North America, typically growing in peat bogs Syn: bog myrtle, sweet gale …   Wiktionary

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