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What plant was named for Zeus' childhood home?

By Chelsie Vandaveer

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July 12, 2002

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Aristotle in The History of Animals (350 BCE, trans. D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson) wrote "Wild goats in Crete are said, when wounded by arrow, to go in search of dittany, which is supposed to have the property of ejecting arrows in the body."

Three hundred thirty-one years later, Virgil continues the legend in The Aeneid (19 BCE, trans. John Dryden): "A branch of healing dittany she brought, Which in the Cretan fields with care she sought: Rough is the stem, which wooly leafs surround; The leafs with flow'rs, the flow'rs with purple crown'd, Well known to wounded goats; a sure relief To draw the pointed steel, and ease the grief."

Kronos a Titan Dethroned His Father Uranus as Ruler of the World But was Dethroned by His Son Zeus

Legends of Dittany of Crete
(Origanum dictamnus Linnaeus) appear to originate in
the earliest mythology of the Greeks.
Kronos a Titan Dethroned His Father Uranus as Ruler
of the World But was Dethroned by His Son Zeus
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John Gerard (The Herbal, 1633) knew the plant as Dictamnum Creticum, "It prevaileth much against all wounds, and especially those made with invenomed weapons, arrows...it draweth forth also splinters of wood, bones, or such like."

Legends of Dittany of Crete (Origanum dictamnus Linnaeus) appear to originate in the earliest mythology of the Greeks. Before the Olympian gods, the Titans ruled supreme. Cronus (Saturn) ruled over the others. He believed he would be deposed by his son as he had deposed his father, Uranus. Each of Rhea's children was swallowed by Cronus to keep his throne.

Rhea (Cronus' wife and sister) and Gaia (their mother) wrapped a stone in swaddling cloths and put the stone in place of the baby Zeus. While Cronus was swallowing the stone, Rhea fled to Mount Dicte on Crete and gave Zeus to Amaltheia, a divine she-goat (nymph?). The goat raised and guarded Zeus through his childhood.

Later, Zeus wore Amaltheia's skin as his aegis (protection) in battle against his father. When he returned victorious, Zeus wrapped Amaltheia's bones in her skin, restoring her life. She can be seen as the star, Capella, riding on the left shoulder of Auriga the charioteer.

The Greek, Diktamnos (Latin, Dictamnus), a plant of 'magical' powers, took its name for Mount Dicte on Crete.

The Island of Crete has great photographs and information. To learn more about Crete, click on the link:

http://creteisland.gr/

The left navigation has articles on the cities and natural wonders of the island.

The Department of Phanerogamic Botany at the Swedish Museum of Natural History has Linnean herbarium sheets of Origanum dictamnus Linnaeus. To view herbarium sheets, click on the link:

http://linnaeus.nrm.se/botany/fbo/o/origa/origdic.html.en

Click on each image to enlarge.

Mountain Valley Growers, Inc.has photograhps of Dittany of Crete Origanum dictamnus Linnaeus. To view photographs, click on the link:

http://www.mountainvalleygrowers.com/oridictamnus.htm

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Oregano Herbs - Seed Packet

Gurney's Seed and Nursery®

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Lavender, Pink Fragrant

Spring Hill Nursery®

Unusual pink form of the ever-popular perennials produces wonderfully fragrant, 8” flower spikes for weeks in midsummer. Pink Lavenders are ideal for borders, herb gardens, even a low hedge. Handsome, silvery green foliage is also fragrant. Grows 15"-18" and plant 12-18” apart.

Shipped in 3" pot. Deer tend to avoid.

Lavandula angustifolia 'Rosea' Zone 5 to 8

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Edelweiss

Spring Hill Nursery®

Popular alpines wildflower! Low-growing, 3-6” plants with wooly, grey-green leaves sport bracts of silvery white in mid-spring to early summer, followed by yellowish- white florets. Edelweiss are ideal groundcover or rock garden plants. Space 8-10” in well-drained soil.

Shipped in 3" pot. Deer tend to avoid.

Leontopodium alpinum Zone 4 to 6

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Dante's Inferno Iris

Spring Hill Nursery®

Destined to become a classic, and only available from Spring Hill! This spectacular reblooming Tall Bearded Iris will set your garden ablaze with glowing color, first in mid to late spring, then again from midsummer to frost. The large, ruffled and flared blooms- with their fiery orange standards and bold maroon falls- command attention in borders, beds and bouquets. You’ll love their pleasantly spicy fragrance, too! Sturdy, 34-36” stems are ideal for cutting. Space #1 field-grown rhizomes 12-24” apart. Deer tend to avoid.

Iris germanica 'Dante's Inferno' Zone 4 to 9

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Daffodil, Sweet Sue-One Cent Sale!

Spring Hill Nursery®

This sweet-scented miniature double variety is well suited for borders or rock gardens. Perfectly shaped, sunny yellow flowers brighten landscapes or bouquets blooming prolifically in early to mid-spring. Grows 12-14" tall. 10-11 cm bulbs.

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Wollemi Pine

National Geographic®

Exclusively from National Geographic, this survivor from the age of the dinosaurs is one of the greatest living fossils discovered in the 20th century. The Wollemi pine is one of the world's oldest and rarest tree species, belonging to a 200-million-year-old plant family thought to have been extinct for more than two million years.

Previously known only from fossil records, it was presumed extinct until a single tree was found in the Wollemi National Park, Australia, in 1994. Subsequent research discovered 100 adult trees that have survived in a single canyon in this wild and rugged area. Click here to view canyon, trees and fossil record.

You can assist in the conservation effort and enjoy the unique opportunity to ensure the continued survival of this rare species by giving the tree as a gift or growing your own. Suitable for indoor container gardening or as a landscape tree in certain areas of the U.S.

Comes with a care manual with the full story about the discovery and fascinating history of the Wollemi pine. Comes in a copper-colored container and will be approximately 10''H when shipped. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of these plants will fund ongoing conservation research. Click here to get your Wollemi Pine and assist in the conservation effort.