For the flora of Turkey, 16
species are known to be endemic (Guner et al., 2000).
Origanum
plants are widely used in agriculture and the pharmaceutical and
cosmetic industries as a culinary herb, flavouring substances of
food products, alcoholic beverages and perfumery for their spicy
fragrance (Sahin et al., 2004). Origanum vulgare L. is the most variable
species of the genus and the only one commonly known as
‘oregano’ in most European countries (D’Antuono et al., 2000).