Native Plant of the Week: Threadleaf Mountain Mint
Updated: Mar 8, 2022
Family: Lamiaceae
Name: Pycnanthemum tenuifolium
Common Name: Threadleaf Mountain Mint
Bloom Time: June-September
Soil Condition: dry-average-moist, well drained, tolerates clay
Light: Sun-Partial Shade
Height: 24-36” (may grow to 48” in rich soil)
Native Range: Eastern United States including Long Island
Flowers: white with lavender specks
Maintenance: if necessary, divide when plants get too wide.
Benefits: Not to be confused with the invasive European mints like spearmint, this fine textured, well behaved, clumping mountain mint is a great addition to any native plant garden or an herb garden. The minty foliage can be used as a culinary herb, especially in teas and cocktails. It may also repel mosquitoes when rubbed onto the skin. One of the best nectar sources, it’s a pollinator magnet for our native bees, wasps, beetles and skipper butterflies! Fantastic in a planter and as a cut flower. Basal foliage is usually evergreen. Unfortunately, it is only moderately deer and rabbit resistant.
Companion Plants: Heliopsis helianthoides (Ox-eye Daisy), Schizachyrium scoparium (Little Bluestem), Monarda fistulosa (Wild Bergamot), Solidago rigida (Stiff Goldenrod)
=============================================================
References:
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=pyte
http://www.newmoonnursery.com/plant/Pycnanthemum-tenuifolium
https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=r690

#NativePlants #PollinatorPlants #IndigenousPlants #Gardeningwithnativeplants