Anyone know what this herb is?

[RintelsPoint]

Have rescued some abandoned herbs in pots. Cant figure out what this one is. Smells a bit like sage. The leaves at the top are about 1cm long.

Anyone know?

It looks like a Hebe, not a herb. I don't think you can eat them. It should have small white, pink or purple flowers soon.

That's not Hebe. It could be bistort. Another picture might help.

Could it be a very beat-up oregano?

Yes you're all right, not a hebe! Previous post too early in the morning! I've got my day eye on now!

JT - I've done that loads of times myself! It doesn't help when you're looking at the picture on a phone at a size of 1cm x 1cm because Mumsnet reduces all photos to the dimensions of a postage stamp!!

Agree with shove. Think its a cold oregano. Bruise the leaves and smell them - that should tell you

I wondered oregano actually. But didn't look like the pics I googled. The leaves seem too long and think, plus they curl, and the purplish/red bits on the underside.

I did crush some and smell it and it smells familiar but clearly I don't have the most discerning nose!

The neighbour who left the plants was from Slovakia if that's any help? (In terms of herbs used in cooking).

I'm not sure about another pic, this was pretty close up as it was.

*long and thin

The trouble with traumatised plants is that they don't look quite right,so it can be hard to identify them from a picture! If it is oregano, it should have flat leaves and look a whole lot happier. But adverse conditions could cause them to curl and go pink like that - if trethew and I are right, it's a sign it's suffering. (There are some plants where the leaves are supposed to curl, but my guess is that this isn't one of them).

Ok another pick with my hand for scale.

The soil was quite dried out and it's been outside all winter - so probably not a happy plant! I'll be nice to it for a bit and see what happens. :) (Hope is oregano as that'd be useful!)

Yep, until someone more expert comes along, I'm sticking with some kind of oregano (the genus Origanum includes marjoram). Looks like it needs water, feeding and a warm spot in sun with some TLC. It should bounce back - it's a toughie. I'm quite surprised the pot has been outside - not because of the oregano (that is quite tough and can withstand cold) but because that looks like parsley next to it, which is not cold hardy.

The other possibility is some kind of root rot - but this tends to happen when the plant is too wet, and your message suggests it's been too dry?

I also think it's some sort of origanum.

These are pics of my golden oregano. They light's falling at the moment, so not that clear, but i think its pretty much the same. Even had a slight purply bit on one of the leaves.

I have an oregano that has that purple colour on the stems and the leaves curl like that when I neglect it. So another oregano vote!