Garden thyme is a low, woody, evergreen subshrub from southern Europe, grown mainly as a culinary and groundcover herb. The key to growing it is full sun and very well-drained soil, with little water.
Family
Lamiaceae (Mint family)
Grows as
Shrub
Light
Full sun
Water
Water deeply but infrequently, letting the soil dry out between waterings.
Soil
Light, sandy or gritty, well-drained soil; alkaline to neutral.
Temperature
10–30 °C; hardy to about -15 °C once established
How easy
Easy
Safety
Not known to be toxic. Not toxic to cats or dogs (ASPCA).
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
SW. Europe, SE. Italy
Climate
temperate
About
Thymus vulgaris (common thyme, German thyme, garden thyme or just thyme) is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae.
Where it grows
The species is native to southern Europe from the western Mediterranean to southern Italy.
Uses
It is useful in the garden as groundcover, where it can be short-lived, but is easily propagated from cuttings. It is also the main source of the herb thyme, used as an ingredient in cooking and as a herbal medicine. It is slightly spicier than oregano and sweeter than sage.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Thymus vulgaris by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.