Myrtus communis

The Myrtus communis or Common Myrtle, called Nerte in Provence, is an evergreen bush emblematic of Mediterranean landscapes and gardens. It forms a dense and rounded mass, with a more or less dark green colour, adorned with small leathery and shiny leaves, dotted in summer with pure white flowers as light as snowflakes. The Myrtus communis is a plant perfectly resistant to drought and very tolerant of exposure. It will find its place in an evergreen hedge or in a shrub bed. It will also be magnificent in a large pot on the terrace or balcony in cold regions.

The Myrtus communis is a plant of the myrtle family, which is found in the wild on the edge of oak or pine forests, in scrubland and rocky scrubland around the Mediterranean, up to Lebanon. It is a slow-growing bush with a naturally dense habit.

This very bushy bush reaches a height of 2 to 3 m (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in), with a spread of 2 m, depending on the growing conditions. The leaves, evergreen in winter, are ovate with a tapered tip and are aromatic when crushed. An essential oil is extracted from them, which is widely used in perfumery and aromatherapy. They measure no more than 1.5 cm (0.6 in) long and 4 to 6 mm (0.2 to 0.2 in) wide, are shiny on both sides, and have a very pronounced central vein. The bush blooms generously in summer, from July to September, which is surprising for a plant in a dry climate. The small flowers with 5 petals, 1 cm (0.4 in) wide, are solitary and open on a large cluster of protruding stamens; they appear in the axils of the leaves, on the new shoots of the year. In autumn, they are followed by the formation of small ovoid and fleshy fruits, pruinose, black-blue in colour, which birds enjoy until winter.

The Common Myrtle, adorned with a mystical fragrance and a very strong symbolic significance, shares a long history with the peoples of the Mediterranean basin. Brighter and finer than boxwood, disease-free, adorned with a thousand adorable little flowers in summer, fragrant, the Myrtus communis would undoubtedly be more widely used in trimmed or free hedges, and in topiary art, if it were a little more hardy. It adapts to all exposures, tolerates very well dry soils, although not excessively calcareous, withstands direct salt spray well, and requires no special care once established. The myrtle tolerates pruning very well, in April or October, without compromising flowering. It can be associated with dwarf pomegranates or arborescent artemisias, shrubby salvias (microphylla), in a colourful checkerboard or a small Mediterranean-inspired bed. It is easily cultivated in a large container, for example accompanying a winter mimosa. On the edge of a grove or woodland, it will join Mexican orange blossom, the Laurel-leaved Cistus (hardy large cistus at -15°C (5 °F)), Pistacia lentiscus, or the European spindle 'Red Cascade'.