Herb
Thymus vulgaris
A tier
Thymus vulgaris is the botanical name of common garden thyme—the upright Mediterranean shrub behind most culinary thyme oil and dried leaf. Chemotypes vary (thymol vs linalool), so intensity differs by origin, but the species is the cook’s baseline thyme. Use as common thyme: stocks, roasts, marinades. Specifying T. vulgaris separates it from lemon thyme, creeping wild thymes, and non-culinary ornamentals.
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Unit
Characteristics
Preparations
DriedFreshOilRoastsStocks
Traits
Chemotype VariableClassic ThymeCulinary BaselineMediterraneanSpecies LevelSpecies Standard
History
Linnaeus published Thymus vulgaris, anchoring culinary thyme taxonomy.
FR
Provençal agriculture refined T. vulgaris for herbes de Provence and export.
Essential-oil and spice industries standardised T. vulgaris lots by chemotype.
Chefs and growers used the binomial to specify true culinary thyme plants.