Anyone grow conradina (false rosemary)?

General Gardening
#1

I went down a Wikipedia rabbit hole trying to research a possibility of hybridizing rosemary and lavender. Instead, I learned about a different genus in the mint family, Conradina.

Conradina - Wikipedia

They are native to North America and have a similar scent profile to Rosmarinus.

Conradina canescens is the most common species. Some nurseries have it listed on their websites but all are out of stock.

Conradina verticillata is federally threatened. It is offered for sale by a nursery in South Carolina but only within the state.

Though I’d ask here if anyone has first-hand experience growing these.

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#2

Had never heard about this one nor did i need it until today.

I am trying cardinal basil this year

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#3

Just a cautionary note some things like Tonka aka false vanilla can be dangerous but is readily available. It was banned in the USA many years ago. https://abcnews.go.com/Health/Healthday/story?id=6157423&page=1

There are even differences in cinnamon Is Your Cinnamon Real? | Food Renegade

All that said it sounds interesting to try false rosemary after some research.

Some substances such as sasafras were banned. It was used to make root beer. Many think the ban was done unfairly. A fake sasafras has been used ever since but its not a plant The Root in Root Beer is Sassafras | Office for Science and Society - McGill University

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#4

I think sassafras was largely banned due to it’s ready conversion to MDMA, but the FDA didn’t want the public to get wind of that and said it was carcinogenic to rats when given at 10000% more than a normal serving size.

If I recall correctly from the homebrewnetwork thread on this topic.

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#5

Sassafras leaves are the filé in filé gumbo.

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#6

Conradina verticillata is currently available from Plant Delights.

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#7

Also consider Winter Savory.