Taxon: Myrica gale L.

Summary

Genus:

Myrica

Family:

Myricaceae

Nomen number:

24842

Place of publication:

Sp. pl. 2:1024. 1753

Protologue link:

https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/359045

Typification:

View in Linnean Typification Project

Verified:

07/21/1995 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

9 (6 active, 3 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Autonym(s)
Myrica gale L. var. gale

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Myrica gale L. var. tomentosa C. DC.
Myrica tomentosa (C. DC.) Asch. & Graebn.

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 60-61.
Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
Gleason, H. A. & A. Cronquist. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada, ed. 2
Hitchcock, C. L. et al. 1955-1969. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest.
Hultén, O. E. G. 1968. Flora of Alaska and neighboring territories.
Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Martin, P. & X. Chang. 2013. Production potential and crop agronomy of sweet gale (Myrica gale L.) in the north of Scotland. Industr. Crops Prod. 46:39-49. DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2012.12.034. Note: this study examined development of Myrica gale as a crop, since essential oils are obtained from wild populations
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Ohwi, J. 1965. Flora of Japan (Engl. ed.).
Ownbey, G. B. & T. Morley. 1991. Vascular plants of Minnesota: a checklist and atlas
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol.
Seymour, F. 1969. The flora of New England.
Simpson, M. J. A. et al. 1996. Past, present and future utilisation of Myrica gale (Myricaceae). Econ. Bot. 50:122-129.
Tutin, T. G. et al., eds. 1964-1980. Flora europaea.
Voss, E. 1972-. Michigan flora.
Wilbur, R. L. 1994. The Myricaceae of the United States and Canada: genera, subgenera, and series. Sida 16:104.

Common names

Language	Name	note	seq	Citation
English	bog-myrtle		1	Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
English	meadow-fern		1	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
English	sweet gale		1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
English (Canada)	sweet gale	Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada official name	2	Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 60-61.
French	bois-sent-bon		2	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
French	myrique baumier		2	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
French (Canada)	myrique baumier	Agriculture & Agroalimentaire Canada nom officiel	2	Darbyshire, S. J. 2003. Inventory of Canadian Agricultural Weeds Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. 60-61.
German	Gagelstrauch		2	Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
Swedish	pors		2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Japan	Hokkaidô
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Japan	Honshu	e.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Eastern Asia	Korea, North
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation	Habarovskij kraj		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation	Kamčatskij kraj		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation	Primorye		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Asia-Temperate	Russian Far East	Russian Federation	Sakhalin		Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Estonia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Latvia			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Lithuania			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Eastern Europe	Russian Federation-European part	European part	n.w.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Belgium			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Germany		n.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Netherlands			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Middle Europe	Poland		n. & w.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	Denmark			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	Finland			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	Ireland			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	Norway			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	Sweden			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Northern Europe	United Kingdom			Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	France		n. & w.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Portugal		w.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Europe	Southwestern Europe	Spain		w.	Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	New Brunswick		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Newfoundland and Labrador		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Nova Scotia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Ontario		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Prince Edward Island		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Québec		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	Minnesota	n.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	Wisconsin		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Connecticut		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Maine		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Massachusetts		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Michigan		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New Hampshire		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New Jersey	n.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New York		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Ohio	Seneca Co. (extirpated?)	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Pennsylvania	n.e.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Rhode Island		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Vermont		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Oregon	n.w.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Washington	w.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	North Carolina	w.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	Canada	Northwest Territories	s.	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	Canada	Yukon		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Subarctic America	United States	Alaska		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Alberta		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	British Columbia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Manitoba		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	Saskatchewan		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
2	Cultivated					also cult.

Native
Asia-Temperate

RUSSIAN FAR EAST: Russian Federation [Habarovskij kraj, Primorye, Kamčatskij kraj, Sakhalin]
EASTERN ASIA: Japan [Hokkaidô, Honshu (e.)], Korea, North

Europe

NORTHERN EUROPE: Denmark, Finland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, Sweden
MIDDLE EUROPE: Belgium, Germany (n.), Netherlands, Poland (n. & w.)
EASTERN EUROPE: Russian Federation-European part [European part (n.w.)], Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia
SOUTHWESTERN EUROPE: Spain (w.), France (n. & w.), Portugal (w.)

Northern America

SUBARCTIC AMERICA: Canada [Northwest Territories (s.), Yukon], United States [Alaska]
EASTERN CANADA: Canada [Québec, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador]
WESTERN CANADA: Canada [Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia]
NORTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey (n.), New York, Ohio (Seneca Co. (extirpated?)), Pennsylvania (n.e.), Rhode Island, Vermont]
NORTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [Minnesota (n.), Wisconsin]
NORTHWESTERN U.S.A.: United States [Oregon (n.w.), Washington (w.)]
SOUTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [North Carolina (w.)]

Cultivated (also cult.)

Reference(s)

FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
Jalas, J. & J. Suominen. 1972-. Atlas florae europaeae.
Komarov, V. L. et al., eds. 1934-1964. Flora SSSR.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Environmental	ornamental		Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Environmental	ornamental		Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Food additives	flavoring	beverage	Simpson, M. J. A. et al. 1996. Past, present and future utilisation of Myrica gale (Myricaceae). Econ. Bot. 50:122-129.
Food additives	flavoring	used to flavour beer	Martin, P. & X. Chang. 2013. Production potential and crop agronomy of sweet gale (Myrica gale L.) in the north of Scotland. Industr. Crops Prod. 46:39-49. DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2012.12.034. Note: this study examined development of Myrica gale as a crop, since essential oils are obtained from wild populations
Human food	beverage base		Martin, P. & X. Chang. 2013. Production potential and crop agronomy of sweet gale (Myrica gale L.) in the north of Scotland. Industr. Crops Prod. 46:39-49. DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2012.12.034. Note: this study examined development of Myrica gale as a crop, since essential oils are obtained from wild populations
Materials	essential oils	potential	Simpson, M. J. A. et al. 1996. Past, present and future utilisation of Myrica gale (Myricaceae). Econ. Bot. 50:122-129.
Materials	essential oils	potential for cosmetic industry, used for insect repellent	Martin, P. & X. Chang. 2013. Production potential and crop agronomy of sweet gale (Myrica gale L.) in the north of Scotland. Industr. Crops Prod. 46:39-49. DOI: 10.1016/j.indcrop.2012.12.034. Note: this study examined development of Myrica gale as a crop, since essential oils are obtained from wild populations
Medicines	folklore		Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Non-vertebrate poisons	disease vector control	potential	Simpson, M. J. A. et al. 1996. Past, present and future utilisation of Myrica gale (Myricaceae). Econ. Bot. 50:122-129.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=24842. Accessed 12 May 2026.