Common name: Common Myrtle
Botanical name: Myrtus communis
The Common Myrtle (Myrtus communis0, is widespread in the Mediterranean region and is also by far the most commonly cultivated. It was sacred to Aphrodite. The other species, Saharan Myrtle M. nivellei, is restricted to the Tassili n’Ajjer mountains in southern Algeria and the Tibesti Mountains in Chad, where it occurs in small areas of sparse relict woodland near the centre of the Sahara Desert; it is listed as an endangered species. However, some botanists are not convinced that M. nivellei is sufficiently distinct to be treated as a separate species.
