southernwood

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   an aromatic shrubby species of wormwood (Artemisia abrotanum), grown for its finely divided leaves and lemon-like scent

   Southernwood released a sharp fragrance when she brushed its silvery leaves.

From Old English suthernewudu, literally southern + wood. The name distinguished this aromatic Mediterranean shrub from native northern plants. Wood here uses an older plant-name sense rather than referring to timber.

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