Common Name: oregano
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Lamiaceae
Zone: 6 to 9
Height: 0.50 to 0.75 feet
Spread: 0.70 to 1.00 feet
Bloom Time: June to September
Bloom Description: Pink
Sun: Full sun
Water: Dry to medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Annual
Flower: Showy, Good Dried
Leaf: Fragrant
Tolerate: Rabbit, Deer, Drought
Culture
Easily grown in average, dry to medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Does very well in gritty, sandy loams. Good heat and drought tolerance. Best to shear plants back regularly before flowering to keep the planting tidy and to promote new growth.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Origanum is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennials and deciduous and evergreen sub-shrubs. They are native to the Mediterranean and southwestern Asia. Some are used as culinary herbs.
Genus name probably comes from the Greek words oros meaning "mountain" and gamos meaning "beauty" in reference to the physical appearance of this plant which is sometimes native of mountain areas where it is appropriately referred to as "beauty of the mountain".
‘Kent Beauty’ is a hybrid ornamental oregano (O. rotundifolium x O. scabrum) that is grown primarily for its attractive flowers and foliage. In the St. Louis area, it may be grown as either an annual or a perennial. This is a bushy, trailing plant (to 10” tall) with wiry stems densely covered with small, oval, silver-veined, glaucous leaves (to 3/4” long). Unique, drooping, pink-bracted, hop-like flowers bloom in whorls from summer to fall. Although the foliage is aromatic, it is not of the pungency and quality expected for culinary oreganos and is usually not used in cooking. Bracted-flowers may be dried for use in dried flower arrangements. Notwithstanding its aforementioned parentage, ‘Kent Beauty’ is often sold by nurseries as a cultivar of O. rotundifolium.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems. Root rot may occur in wet, poorly drained soils. Fungal diseases, aphids and spider mites are occasional problems. Deer and rabbits tend to avoid this plant.
Uses
Rock gardens or well-draining border edges. Suitable for use in containers, window boxes, or hanging baskets. Excellent cut flower for dried arrangements.