Oregano Brujo (Plectranthus amboinicus)

by Brandon Ruiz

Walking out in the field I could feel the intense heat from above. It was summer in the Carolinas, about 100 degrees and I was tending to a plot on the East side of Charlotte. I walked out to check where most of the Oregano Brujo (Plectranthus amboinicus) was growing, and saw a fusion of green tones, vibrant green, succulent leaves against a darker green Huacatay (Tagetes minuta), with a backdrop of sturdy, reddish snakeskin-like stems holding up the tall and bushy Molokhia (Corchorus olitorius). It hadn’t rained in a week or so, yet when I moved the soil under the Oregano Brujo, it was moist an inch or two in, covered in dead leaves and organic matter. Just by pushing aside the herb, the vibrant aromas of camphor, thyme, clove and oregano flooded my senses and brought me back to the kitchen, adding leaves in with sofrito and into other dishes. This is a medicine growing rampant in my gardens that takes me back to Puerto Rico, home cooking and a sense of calm. 

Names 

Plectranthus amboinicus (Lamiaceae), Oregano Brujo/Oregano (Puerto Rico), Broadleaf Thyme, Oregano (Throughout Caribbean), Pudina (Trinidad and Tobago), Indian Borage, Spanish Thyme (English), Da shou xiang (China), Pokok Bangun-bangun (Malaysia), Pashan bhedi (India), Sup Mint (South Africa)

Description/Taxonomy

Oregano Brujo is a sprawling and crawling succulent, with opposite, alternate leaves that are tomentose like the dense, succulent stem. Simple leaves are thick, with more hairs on the bottom of the leaves than top, and round with serrated edges. This plant rarely blooms, especially in temperate climates, but when they do the flowers are shortly pedicelled and are pale purple in dense whorls on a long, slender raceme.

Parts Used

The leaves and stems (all aerial parts) are used traditionally, however the flowers and roots are rarely used.

History/Ethnobotany

Originating throughout Africa, India and Indonesia (Ambon Island, also the source of its latin amboinicus), the leaves and stems of this medicine have been used extensively by many cultures. Aside from its physical medicinal usage, it has been used for religious purposes and offered to spirits when a house is being built in some communities. It’s powerful and soothing aromatic properties are used for hair growth and to perfume the skin, simply by crushing and rubbing the juice on one's body. It is a popular plant in the Zulu medical system and is made into a syrup for respiratory conditions, as well as being made into a decoction or tea. It is even used in the treatment of cattle for various ailments. In India, it is cooked in buttermilk to heal bacteria-induced diarrhea. In this preparation, it has also been found that Oregano Brujo helps foster and increase the growth of L. plantarum for overall gut health. In India it is also squeezed and applied to the eyes to alleviate conjunctivitis. In certain places, it is added to laundry to provide aroma and help clean fabrics and as an insect repellant. Around the world it is taken for chronic asthma to alleviate symptoms, but some say it can help reverse it completely with long-term use. Almost all cultures utilize Oregano Brujo in a culinary manner, using it as a substitute for sage, thyme and oregano, but its medicinal qualities cross into its use as a food as well. Infusions over a long-term period have been used to help kidney and liver issues, and it is considered a general tonic when drunk every day. Throughout the Caribbean and South America, there are a myriad of uses including but not limited to: nervous disorders, aches and pains, GI issues, fever and chills, diarrhea, multiple respiratory disorders and even as a cleaning agent. 

Environmental Significance

Growing in the wild in the tropics, it sprawls out and can grow up to 1m high, and 2-3m wide. It is found in parts of Africa growing at low altitudes in woodlands or coastal bush, even in rocky slopes and sandy flats. It has become naturalized in many regions around the world, and is even considered invasive in the Virgin Islands and various parts of the Pacific. It poses the problem of competing with native flora by creating dense thickets, and is highly adaptable to various types of soils and climates. Along with this all, it’s ability to quickly propagate from cuttings helps its spread. In and outside of its native region, bees, flies, hawk-moths and butterflies are attracted to the flowers for nectar.

Cultivation and Harvesting

Oregano Brujo grows rapidly in moist, humid conditions. Once roots are established, it does not need much water, as its succulent aerial parts store it generously. It can be planted as a ground cover, spreading throughout temperate climates and easy to propagate and harvest from multiple times in one season. Even once established, consistent watering helps accelerate growth, and due to its adaptability can grow in intense drought as well. From rocky and sandy soils to soil high in organic matter, it can grow in various types of soil. A small cutting can be inserted into the soil or a pot, and should set roots within a week in optimal conditions. When harvesting, pick above a leaf node to send shoots outward and encourage bushiness, which can help the plant endure high winds. At the end of the temperate season, harvest all aerial parts and pull roots if desired, unless in Zone 9+. In tropical settings, continue to pick and propagate more plants, pulling if needed for space. 

Energetics

Oregano Brujo is a warming, aromatic and stimulating plant. It’s heating properties come from its volatile oils, which it is popularly substituted for warming herbs like oregano and thyme for. When eaten raw, this warming energy can be felt distributed by the water content in the succulent leaves, distributing the flavors and heat throughout the mouth and body.

Organ Affinities

Oregano Brujo has an affinity to the digestive system and lungs. The aromatic leaves help to dilate the bronchioles, are antimicrobial and antiviral to many ailments of the respiratory system and a perceivable aroma helps to breathe easier and fresher when the plant is consumed. The digestive system is stimulated to ease indigestion, calm the nerves with affinity to the stomach (anxiety held in the stomach etc), and even ease smooth muscle irritation and cramping.

Constituents

Volatile oils (p-cymene, limonene, b-myrcene, a-pinene, a-thujene, thymol, camphor, carvacrol, ocimene, nerol, eugenol, a-terpinene, a-thujene, a-phellandrene, sabinene, caryophyllene oxide, chavicol, 1-epi-cubenol), caffeic acid, cirsimaritin, eriodictyol, salvianolic acid-A, shimobashiric acid, chrysoeriol.

Medicinal Actions

Antiviral, antimicrobial, antifungal, bronchodilator, carminative, antidiarrheal, anticonvulsive, antiepileptic, antitumorigenic, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, astringent, analgesic, vulnerary, anti-allergenic, antivenom (specific to venom of Heterometrus laoticus), lactogenic, cardiovascular tonic, anti-larvicidal. 

Combining with Other Plants

For issues of the skin (external use), Oregano Brujo can be combined with antimicrobial and vulnerary medicines like Calendula (Calendula officinalis) or Yellowroot (Xanthorhiza simplicissima) as a topical wash. For digestive upset, it can be combined with smooth aromatics like Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) or stronger digestive bitters like Quassia (Quassia amara). For diarrhea, it can be combined with other astringents like Guayaba leaf (Psidium guajava). For working with the respiratory system, other aromatic or resinous medicines like Elecampane (Inula helenium) are helpful.

Conservation and Considerations

Plectranthus amboinicus is not endangered in any place, unlike some other species of Plectranthus. If anything, it can be invasive and should be maintained in tropical climates so that it doesn’t spread excessively. 

Dosage, Preparation and Consumption

Due to the succulent nature of the plant, it’s best to lightly boil the chopped leaves and drink as a tea, or mash well before steeping as an infusion. This tea can be drunk 3 cups a day.  Eating the leaves raw is a simple way of consuming, and in some cultures eating a leaf a day is a common method to consistently take in its medicine. Oregano Brujo leaves can be dried but take some time and lose their vibrancy and color. When dried, they can be used for the same purposes, and even powdered (though when powdered it maintains a fluffy consistency). A standard or folk method tincture can be made with vegetable glycerin, alcohol and even honey, as long as the leaves are completely dried beforehand, to avoid molding. As a tincture, 1-2 droppers full as needed is great for dosage. When cooking, the leaves can be mashed and added towards the end of the dish, to avoid losing too much of the aromatic medicine. Another potent preparation of Oregano Brujo can be made by juicing the succulent stems and leaves. This juice can be taken 1 tbsp as needed for respiratory or digestive issues. For external medicine, this juice can be administered over the area a few times a day, or boiled and used as a wash for the entire body.

Accessibility

Oregano Brujo can be bought at hardware/gardening stores and at many plant nurseries. Sometimes,  you can find variegated varieties with white or yellow tones on the leaves that are commonly used as ornamental plants, but are perfect for medicinal usage as well. These variegated varieties (possibly labeled as Cuban or Portuguese Oregano) are completely edible and interchangeable with the green-leaved variety as well. If you aren’t able to find any at your local shop, finding someone who has a plant at home may work as well, given that propagation is so easy with the dense, succulent stems. Sometimes, online shops on Etsy even sell these fresh cuttings, which can be shipped with moist material and still be viable when arriving. 

Cautions and Contraindications

There are no known contraindications for taking Oregano Brujo, but it may be smart to avoid overconsumption when pregnant. If anything, the juice may sting open wounds a bit when applied to clean it out. 

Personal Experience and Recommendations

My experience with Oregano Brujo has been from ground to medicine, as in Charlotte, NC I’ve grown Oregano Brujo consistently. In this temperate climate, plants have reached 3-4 ft wide and 2-3 ft tall, rapidly producing and creating moisture in the soil below for nearby plants. It can be cut, stuck into the ground and left and within a week will be rooted and beginning to grow again. In cooking, I add Oregano Brujo to meals or preparations that need a thyme/oregano-like flavor. I’ve also made washes for skin issues like cuts and psoriasis. The pressed juice is by far one of the most potent preparations of this medicine, and I’ve used it successfully for respiratory complaints, digestive upset and even headaches. As a poultice, it can be applied for pains and headaches, as well as in liniments for the same purpose. I’ve made many bottles of fire cider with Oregano Brujo, as well as solo vinegar extracts, where it brings a strong and invigorating aromatic quality. Interestingly, it turns vinegar a sweet flavor when infused, this has been consensus with a few others who have done the same thing as well. For feeling more grounded or to reduce symptoms of intoxication (mostly through usage of Cannabis spp.) a leaf can be crushed, covered in honey and combined with a bit of black peppercorn and eaten whole. For earaches, it can be mashed and applied inside the ear for a few hours. Any area of physical pains and aches can be alleviated with a rubbing alcohol infused with Oregano Brujo’s leaves and camphor. 

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Brandon Ruiz is a Holistic Herbalist, Permaculture Designer and Plant-Based Nutritionist who lives in Charlotte, NC. He specializes in studying and working with plant medicines from his native Puerto Rico and surrounding islands, and the Appalachian region; this Appalachia + Island fusion is showcased through his company, Atabey Choreto Medicinals. He also is the Director and Founder of the Charlotte Herbal Accessibility Project, a project in Charlotte that aims to provide equal and affordable access to herbal medicine in its entirety, from seed to tincture.

Resources:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6274163/

http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/SUCCULENTS/Family/Lamiaceae/27981/Plectranthus_amboinicus

https://herbsocietyblog.wordpress.com/tag/trinidad-pudina/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25796406/