Origanum dictamus

Origanum dictamus or Origanum cretica, known in Greek as "Δίκταμο" or in Cretan dialect "Έρωντας" (love), is tender perennial plant 12–15 inches high.

It is an indigenous plant of Crete Greece and it symbolizes birth and love. Its local name in Crete (love) is due to the fact that it likes to grow in very steep slopes on the rocky mountains of Crete. The young men used to show their courage and their love to their beloved ones by risking their live picking it up and offering it to them.

It was used in medicine in Ancient Greece for its pharmaceutical properties on the stomach aches and complaints of the peptic system. It is thought that wild beasts used to eat it to help them heal themselves when injured by hunters.