Dictamnus is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the family Rutaceae. The species, Dictamnus albus, is also known as burning bush,[2] dittany,[2] gas plant[2] or fraxinella.[2] This herbaceous perennial has several geographical variants.[3] It is native to warm, open woodland habitats in southern Europe, north Africa and much of Asia.
This plant grows about 40 cm (16 in) to 100 cm (39 in) high. Its flowers form a loose pyramidal spike and vary in colour from pale purple to white. The flowers are five-petalled with long projecting stamens. The leaves resemble those of an ash tree.[3]
The name “burning bush” derives from the volatile oils produced by the plant, which can catch fire readily in hot weather,[4] leading to comparisons with the burning bush of the Bible, including the suggestion that this is the plant involved there. The daughter of Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus is said to have ignited the air once, at the end of a particularly hot, windless summer day, above Dictamnus plants, using a simple matchstick. The volatile oils have a reputed component of isoprene.
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