Echte Kammminze

Ciliate elsholtzia (Elsholtzia ciliata) is an aromatic annual herb in the family Lamiaceae, native to much of Asia including China, Japan, Korea, and South and Southeast Asia, and naturalized in parts of Europe and North America. It produces upright stems bearing opposite, ovate, toothed leaves with a distinctive mint-like to spicy fragrance, and dense, one-sided spikes of small lilac to purple flowers in late summer and autumn. The species thrives in disturbed habitats including roadsides, field margins, waste ground, and forest edges, tolerating a wide range of soil types. In parts of East Asia, Elsholtzia ciliata has been used medicinally as a diaphoretic, digestive aid, and in folk remedies for respiratory ailments. It is also cultivated as an aromatic culinary herb in China. The species is not assessed by the IUCN, reflecting its wide distribution, weedy habit, and lack of conservation concern. Taxonomic studies of Elsholtzia have clarified relationships among the roughly forty species in the genus, which spans temperate to subtropical Asia. Ciliate elsholtzia contributes to late-season nectar for pollinators, including bees and butterflies, in both its native Asian range and as a naturalized plant in Europe. Its essential oils have been investigated for antimicrobial properties.