Teucrium marum, the cat thyme, is a close relative of germander; despite what its name suggests, it is not a thyme. Its small, oval leaves give it a thyme-like appearance, but the musty scent is quite unlike the delicate aroma of thyme, cat thyme is a mounding, tender perennial with grey-green leaves tipped by fragrant pink flowers in summer. It has oval leaves, broader at the base, downy beneath, with uncut margins. It is in leaf all year. The flowers, appearing between July and September, are in one-sided spikes, the corollas are crimson in color.