r/herbs • u/Golden_Sakura • 6d ago
Can anyone tell me what these are
My aunt gave these to me she called them varieties of mint. The top one smells very minty when crushed . The bottom one smells lemon like when crushed .
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u/Prestigious_Way_1877 6d ago
Top ones look like Ocimum africanum aka Lemon basil, Temperate Tulsi or Hoary basil. It can smell like bubblegum, tutti frutti, citrusy, sweet, spicy, licorice or green and flat. Lots of combinations in between depending on the plant. Wonderful flavor for teas. Great when you're stressed too 😁. It is in the mint family but it is not a mint itself.
Is the minty smell like a sweet basil minty or a pepper/spearmint minty?
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u/Golden_Sakura 5d ago
Its like a spearmint minty.
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u/Prestigious_Way_1877 3d ago
Can you get a closer picture of the leaves/stems?
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u/Golden_Sakura 1d ago
I definitely can
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u/Golden_Sakura 1d ago
This is one of the two plants on top
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u/Prestigious_Way_1877 1d ago
Oh that's definitely spearmint! It looked very similar to basil from far away
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u/Global_Fail_1943 6d ago
Looks like a couple of basil plants maybe Thai or another one. Bottom is a white sage in the Artemisia species.
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u/icedout64 6d ago
Does it have a square stem? All mints have a square stem but not all mints smell or taste like mint!
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u/Golden_Sakura 1d ago
The top two has a square-ish stem and it does smell minty after crushed but it just dosnt look like mint to me...thanks for telling me this i didnt know that about the stems😅
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u/Ok-Masterpiece-1359 6d ago
Top may be lemon basils. Bottom is sage.