Family: Lamiaceae
Name: Monarda punctata - Spotted Horsemint
Bloom Time: June - August
Flower: Creamy Yellow with Purple Spots and White, Pink or Purple Bracts
Soil Condition: Dry-Average and Well Drained
Light: Sun - Partial Sun
Height: 12-36" tall by 12-24" wide
Native Range: Eastern and Southern United States including Long Island
Zone: 4 to 9
Monarda punctata is a must have magnet for native bees and wasps. The long lasting, showy flowers are quite spectacular and take on a 'Dr. Seuss'-like whimsy. It is a short-lived perennial but self sows readily and may spread aggressively in ideal conditions. The fragrant leaves may be steeped in cold water to make a 'medicinal' tea for inflammation and backache. Makes a great cut flower. Works well in a planter. Spotted Horsemint will tolerate moist soil as long as it's well drained.
Maintenance: Deadheading spent flowers will prolong bloom time. Just remember to leave some to go to seed, susceptible to powdery mildew
Benefits: Nectar source, host plant to Orange Mint Moth and several other moths, juglone tolerant (Black Walnut), deer and rabbit resistant
Companion Plants: Asclepias tuberosa - Butterfly Weed, Agastache foeniculum - Anise Hyssop, Rudbeckia fulgida var. fulgida - Black-eyed Susan, Coreopsis verticillata - Tickseed, Schizachyrium scoparium - Little Bluestem
pics: KMS Native Plants LLC
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References:
1. https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=MOPU
