Dictamnus is a genus of flowering plant in the family Rutaceae, with a single species, Dictamnus albus.
It is known variously as Burning-bush, False Dittany, White Dittany, and Gas-plant.
It is a perennial herb, native to southern Europe, north Africa and southern and central Asia.
This plant grows about 60 cm high. Its flowers form a loose pyramidal spike and vary in colour from pale purple to white. It normally grows in woods in warm places.
It is a popular garden plant both for its flowers and for its fragrance.
It bears large elegant flowers of various colours: red, white, striped or blue.
Its leaves resemble those of an Ash tree. Outside its natural range it is planted in gardens and grows well in warm places. It can also be found in sheltered places in woodlands.
In the summer months, the whole plant is covered with a kind of flammable substance, which is glutinous to the touch, and has a very fragrant smell; but if it takes fire, it goes off with a flash all over the plant.
The name "Burning-bush" derives from the volatile oils produced by the plant, which can catch fire readily in hot weather, leading to comparisons with the burning bush of the Bible, including the suggestion that this is the plant involved there.
The plant is more commonly known today as the Burning Bush. It is the essential oil, which has a lemon-like smell, that is inflammable.
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