Lamiaceae
Melissa

Melissa officinalis L.

First published in Sp. Pl.: 592 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Medit. to Central Asia. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the temperate biome. It is used as a medicine and invertebrate food, has environmental uses and for food.

Distribution

Native to:

Albania, Algeria, Baleares, Bulgaria, Corse, Cyprus, East Aegean Is., France, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Kirgizstan, Kriti, Lebanon-Syria, Morocco, North Caucasus, NW. Balkan Pen., Palestine, Portugal, Sardegna, Sicilia, Spain, Tadzhikistan, Transcaucasus, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Türkiye, Türkiye-in-Europe, Uzbekistan

Introduced into:

Alabama, Argentina Northeast, Argentina Northwest, Argentina South, Arkansas, Austria, Azores, Baltic States, Belgium, British Columbia, California, Canary Is., Chile Central, Connecticut, Czechia-Slovakia, Delaware, Denmark, District of Columbia, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Ireland, Juan Fernández Is., Kansas, Kentucky, Krym, Louisiana, Madeira, Maine, Manitoba, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Netherlands, New Jersey, New York, New Zealand North, New Zealand South, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Poland, Québec, Rhode I., Romania, South Carolina, South European Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tasmania, Tennessee, Ukraine, Uruguay, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Siberia, West Virginia

Synonyms

Homotypic Synonyms

Accepted Infraspecifics

Classification

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Publications

POWO follows these authorities in accepting this name:

  • Adolphy, K. & al. (2021). Beiträge zur Flora Nordhein-Westfalens aus dem Jahr 2020. Jahrbuch des Bochumer Botanischen Vereins 12: 199-278.
  • Arbo, M.M. & al. (2018). Flora Argentina. Flora vascular de la República Argentina 20(1): 1-488. INTA, IMBIV & IBODA.
  • Castroviejo, S. & al. (eds.) (2010). Flora Iberica 12: 1-650. Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC, Madrid.
  • Danin, A. & Fragman- Sapir, O. (2019). Flora of Israel Online http://flora.org.il/en/plants/.
  • Danton, P. & Perrier, C. (2004). Liste de la Flore vasculaire de l'île Robinson Crusoe archipel Juan Fernández, Chili. Journal de Botanique Société de Botanique de France 24: 67-78.
  • Govaerts, R. (2003). World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  • Hassler, M. & Muer, T. (2022). Flora Germanica: alle Farn- und Blütenpflanzen Deutschlands in Text und Bild 2: 865-1712. Verlag Regionalkultur, Uberstadt-Weiher.
  • Knapp, W.M. & Naczi, R.F.C. (2021). Vascular plants of Maryland, USA. A comprehensive account of the state's botanical diversity. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 113: 1-151.
  • Kral, R., Diamond, A.R., Ginzbarg, S.L., Hansen, C.J., Haynes, R.R., Keener, B.R., Lelong, M.G., Spaulding, D.D. & Woods, M. (2011). Annotated checklist of the vascular plants of Alabama: 1-112. Botanical reseach institute of Texas.
  • Muer, T., Sauerbier, H. & Cabrara Calixto, F. (2020). Die Farn- und Blütenpflanzen Madeiras: 1-792. Verlag und Versandbuchhandlung Andreas Kleinsteuber.
  • Nowak, A. & Nobis, M. (eds.) (2020). Illustrated Flora of Tajikistan and adjacent areas 2: 367-766. PAN, Polish academy of sciences.
  • Stace, C. (2019). New Flora of the British Isles ed. 4: 1-1266. C & M Floristics.
  • Stalažs, A. (2024). List of vascular plants of Latvia (with Latvian names): 1-312. Dobele.
  • de Salas, MF, Baker, ML (2022). A Census of the Vascular Plants of Tasmania, including Macquarie Island: 1-161. Tasmanian Herbarium, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart. https://flora.tmag.tas.gov.au/resources/census/.

Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

  • Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Useful Plants of Boyacá Project

  • Florez-Cárdenas, G., Núñez-Izquierdo, O. L., Núñez-Izquierdo, M. M., Ramírez-Mesa, M., & Zusunaga-Quintana, J. A. (2010). 100 Plantas útiles del páramo del Rabanal: Guía para comunidades rurales. Bogotá: Instituto Alexander von Humboldt - CAR - Corpoboyac
  • Granados-Tochoy, J. C., Lastra-Romero, C. A., Correa-Casas, M., & Monsalve, D. (2007). Estudio florístico de la agrobiodiversidad del municipio de Garagoa (Valle de Tenza, Boyacá, Colombia). Instituto Alexander von Humboldt, Bogotá.
  • Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humbodlt (2014). Plantas alimenticias y medicinales nativas de Colombia. 2567 registros, aportados por: Castellanos, C. (Contacto del recurso), Valderrama, N. (Creador del recurso, Autor), Castro, C. (Proveedor de metadatos), Bernal, Y. (Autor), García, N. (Autor). Versión 11.0. http://i2d.humboldt.org.co/ceiba/resource.do?r=ls_colombia_magnoliophyta_2014
  • Kew’s Economic Botany collection in The State of the World’s Plants Report–2016. (2016). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew https://stateoftheworldsplants.org/2016/
  • Lagos-López, M. (2007). Estudio etnobotánico de especies vegetales con propiedades medicinales en seis municipios de Boyacá, Colombia. Actualidades Biológicas, 29(86), 87-96.
  • Toscano-González, J. Y. (2006). Uso tradicional de plantas medicinales en la vereda San Isidro, municipio de San José de Pare-Boyacá: Un estudio preliminar usando técnicas cuantitativas. Acta Biológica Colombiana, 11(2), 137-146.

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Danin, A. & Fragman- Sapir, O. (2019). Flora of Israel Online http://flora.org.il/en/plants/.
  • Danton, P. & Perrier, C. (2004). Liste de la Flore vasculaire de l'île Robinson Crusoe archipel Juan Fernández, Chili. Journal de Botanique Société de Botanique de France 24: 67-78.
  • Dobignard, A. & Chatelain, C. (2012). Index synonymique de la flore d'Afrique du nord 4: 1-431. Éditions des conservatoire et jardin botaniques, Genève.
  • Kral, R., Diamond, A.R., Ginzbarg, S.L., Hansen, C.J., Haynes, R.R., Keener, B.R., Lelong, M.G., Spaulding, D.D. & Woods, M. (2011). Annotated checklist of the vascular plants of Alabama: 1-112. Botanical reseach institute of Texas.
  • Stace, C. (2019). New Flora of the British Isles ed. 4: 1-1266. C & M Floristics.
  • Stalažs, A. (2024). List of vascular plants of Latvia (with Latvian names): 1-312. Dobele.
  • Webb, C.J., Sykes, W.R & Garnock-Jones, P.J. (1988). Flora of New Zealand 4: 1-1365. R.E.Owen, Government Printer, Wellington.
  • de Salas, MF, Baker, ML (2022). A Census of the Vascular Plants of Tasmania, including Macquarie Island: 1-161. Tasmanian Herbarium, Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart. https://flora.tmag.tas.gov.au/resources/census/.

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • Jex-Blake, Gard. E. Afr., ed. 4: 266 (1957)
  • K.H.S., Gard. E. Afr.: 170 (1995)

Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

  • Allen, D., Bilz, M., Leaman, D.J., Miller, R.M., Timoshyna, A., & Window, J. (2014). European Red List of medicinal plants. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg 10:907382.
  • Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R., & Celis, M. (eds.). (2020). Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia. v1.1. Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Dataset/Checklist. https://doi.org/10.15472/7avdhn
  • Diazgranados et al. (2021). Catalogue of plants of Colombia. Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia project. In prep.
  • Diazgranados, M., Allkin, B., Black N., Cámara-Leret, R., Canteiro C., Carretero J., Eastwood R., Hargreaves S., Hudson A., Milliken W., Nesbitt, M., Ondo, I., Patmore, K., Pironon, S., Turner, R., Ulian, T. (2020). World Checklist of Useful Plant Species. Produced by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Knowledge Network for Biocomplexity.
  • FPI (2021). Food Plants International. https://fms.cmsvr.com/fmi/webd/Food_Plants_World?homeurl=https://foodplantsinternational.com/plants/
  • GBIF.org (2021). GBIF species matching tool. https://www.gbif.org/tools/species-lookup
  • GRIN (2021). Germplasm Resources Information Network from the United States Department of Agriculture. https://www.ars-grin.gov/
  • Garcia, H. (1992). Flora Medicinal de Colombia. Botánica Médica. Segunda Edición. Tercer Mundo Editores. Tomo III.
  • Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humbodlt (2014). Plantas alimenticias y medicinales nativas de Colombia. 2567 registros, aportados por: Castellanos, C. (Contacto del recurso), Valderrama, N. (Creador del recurso, Autor), Bernal, Y. (Autor), García, N. (Autor). http://i2d.humboldt.org.co/ceiba/resource.do?r=ls_colombia_magnoliophyta_2014
  • Medicinal Plant Names Services (MPNS) v.10 (2021); http://mpns.kew.org/
  • RBG, Kew (2021). Kew Economic Botany Collection. https://ecbot.science.kew.org/
  • Willis, K.J. (ed.) (2017). State of the World’s Plants 2017. Report. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Other Data

Other Kew resources that provide information on this taxon:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status Has image?
Jul 26, 2023 Christenhusz, M.J.M. [MC9659] United Kingdom K001527286 Yes
Béguinot, A. [s.n.] Italy K005570393 Yes
Krieger [s.n.] K005570424 Yes
Atchley, S.C. [2341] Greece K005570440 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K005570420 Yes
Czetz, L. [s.n.] Romania K005570431 Yes
Gabriel Strobl, P. [s.n.] K005570403 Yes
[Dr. Wiedmann] [s.n.] K005570401 Yes
Parlatore [s.n.] Italy K005570395 Yes
Cope, T.A. [RBG 180] United Kingdom K000914345 Yes
Gaillardot, C. [534] K005570430 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K005570399 Yes
Woods [s.n.] K005570391 Yes
Sintenis, P.; Bornmüller, J. [1427] K005570432 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] K005570400 Yes
Wild, A. [s.n.] K005570433 Yes
Huter [s.n.] K005570428 Yes
Mabille, P. [s.n.] France K005570412 Yes
Gilliat-Smith, B. [258] Bulgaria K005570425 Yes
Orphanides, T.G. [534] K005570435 Yes
Reverchon, E. [279] Italy K005570417 Yes
Brummitt, R.K. [18882] Italy K005570402 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Italy K005570419 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Austria K005570407 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Spain K005570422 Yes
Forster [s.n.] Switzerland K005570398 Yes
Wierzbicki (Dr) [s.n.] K005570434 Yes
Mabille, P. [s.n.] France K005570418 Yes
Balls, E.K.; Gourlay, W.B. [B3660] Greece K005570437 Yes
Atchley, S.C. [s.n.] Greece K005570436 Yes
Berger [s.n.] Greece K005570429 Yes
Requien, M. [s.n.] K005570396 Yes
Reverchon [s.n.] France K005570414 Yes
Reverchon, E. [87] France K005570413 Yes
Reichenbach [s.n.] K005570392 Yes
s.coll. [s.n.] Spain K005570415 Yes
Béguinot, A. [s.n.] Italy K005570408 Yes
Gilliat-Smith, B. [360] Bulgaria K005570426 Yes
Atchley, S.C. [1538] Greece K005570438 Yes
Porta; Rigo [377] Italy K005570394 Yes
Haynald, L. (Dr) [s.n.] K005570427 Yes
[W. Sweninon] [48] Italy K005570397 Yes
Carriez, A. [s.n.] K005570404 Yes
[Ft] [s.n.] K005570390 Yes
Graells, M.P. [s.n.] Spain K005570411 Yes
Todaro [1143] Italy K005570406 Yes
Reverchon, E. [89] Spain K005570410 Yes
Atchley, S.C. [2341] Greece K005570439 Yes
Clarke, C.B. [127] Spain K005570423 Yes
s.coll. [2245] K005570409 Yes
Todaro [1143] Italy K005570405 Yes
Sennen (Fr.) [s.n.] Spain K005570416 Yes
Reverchon, E. [89] Spain K005570421 Yes

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • EBC Common Names

    • Common Names from Kew's Economic Botany Collection https://www.kew.org/science/collections-and-resources/collections/economic-botany-collection

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Living Collection Database

    • Common Names from Kew's Living Collection Database

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2026. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Universidad Nacional de Colombia

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants of Boyacá Project

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/