MARJORAM

marjoram, (o. fr. _majorane_, med. lat. _majorana_; not connected with _major_, greater, nor with _amaracus_), in botany, the common name for some aromatic herbs or undershrubs, belonging to the genus _origanum_ (natural order labiatae). wild marjoram is _o. vulgare_, a perennial common in england in dry copses and on hedge-banks, with many stout stems 1 to 3 ft. high, bearing short-stalked somewhat ovate leaves and clusters of purple flowers. sweet or knotted marjoram, _o. marjorana_, and pot marjoram, _o. onites_, are cultivated for the use of their aromatic leaves, either green or dry, for culinary purposes; the tops are cut as the plants begin to flower and are dried slowly in the shade.