Gardening
Thyme, oregano, rosemary, summer savory, hyssop, lavender, peppermint, and spearmint all belong to the mint family
Chances are, most of us are growing a member of the mint family in our gardens. The mint family of plants is large, characterized by square stems and aromatic foliage, with over 7,000 species worldwide and centers of diversity in the Mediterranean, Central Asia, and China.
Thyme, oregano, rosemary, summer savory, hyssop, lavender, peppermint, and spearmint all belong to this cosmopolitan family and originate from the Mediterranean region. Plants like patchouli and shiso, with global economic importance, hail from Asia. Basil can trace its roots to India — its documented use first appearing 5,000 years ago. Tulsi and holy basil hold places of honor in Hindi and Greek Orthodox cultures. These plants are deeply steeped in history for their strongly aromatic foliage, providing plant medicine and complexity to our cooking.
Fortunately, the presence of aromatic oils in the leaves of the mint family that we value so much leads herbivores like deer to avoid them. This week’s column will explore the mint family beyond the culinary and medicinal stars of the vegetable garden, to include stalwart perennials that support a wide range of pollinators, add beauty to the summer landscape, and, most importantly for those of us who struggle with deer pressure, will be avoided by those marauding vegetarians.
I would like to begin with a disclaimer: There are no absolutes in gardening and no guarantees that the following plants will not at least be sampled by deer. Hunger can drive animals to try things they normally avoid. The likelihood of deer browsing on mint family plants is very low, but not zero.
Bee balms, horsemints, wild bergamot, and Oswego tea (Monarda spp.) are highly ornamental and popular garden perennials. The flowers resemble a fireworks display: clusters of narrow tubular flowers, arranged radially and seeming to explode from the center in all directions. Without fail, every year at Garden in the Woods in Framingham, hummingbird clearwing moths, the most magical of woodland creatures, appear exactly when our wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) begins to bloom. The combination of fragrant foliage and floral scent perfumes the air, transporting visitors amid the gentle hum of the moths’ wings.
Wild bergamot with a hummingbird clearwing moth. – Ulrich Lorimer
Jacob Cline scarlet bee balm (Monarda didyma ‘Jacob Cline’) is a top-performing selection with good disease resistance to powdery mildew and vibrant red blossoms that draw insects and hummingbirds alike. Bradbury’s bee balm (Monarda bradburiana) is valued for its small stature — about 2 feet tall — and excellent disease resistance. I personally like spotted horsemint (Monarda punctata) for its unusual silver and pink bracts, its drought tolerance, and its ability to attract every type of insect in the neighborhood.
Spotted horsemint attracts every type of insect in the neighborhood. – Ulrich Lorimer
While not hardy in New England, lemon bee balm (Monarda citriodora) lights up the garden with its hot-pink bracts and pink flowers. I treat this like a summer annual, making sure to collect seeds at the end of the season to resow for next year.
Mountain mints (Pycnanthemum spp.) are another group of excellent garden perennials. I consider them to be a keystone species in that they support an outsized number of pollinators and beneficial insects compared to others at this time of year. When bruised, the foliage is reminiscent of peppermint, basil, or lavender. The flowers are densely clustered atop the stems, and some species feature silvery bracts beneath the flowers, with others lacking the colorful bracts.
Mountain mints can be rambunctious growers in the garden, displaying a quality well known to the mint family: aggressive rhizomes. Broad-leaved mountain mint (Pycnanthemum mutiicum) and Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum) are most exuberant; be sure to afford plenty of space for them to expand. I find the most well-behaved of the mountain mints to be narrow-leaved mountain mint (Pycnanthemum tenuifolium), which forms tidy clumps that get larger over time.
Narrow-leaved mountain mint with a Sphex wasp pollinator. – Ulrich Lorimer
Giant hyssops (Agastache spp.) are known for the towering spires of lavender and purple blooms, often buzzing with pollinator activity. Black Adder is a selection of the native anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) and features dark flower buds and violet-red flowers, whereas Blue Fortune is a hybrid between the anise hyssop and rough-leaved hyssop (Agastache rugosa), a species from Korea. Both are compact selections, disease-resistant, and very floriferous.
Hedgenettles or Betony (Stachys sp.) are excellent garden perennials and quite deer-resistant. They include old favorites like lambs’ ears (Stachys byzantina) and new favorites like Stachys ‘Hummelo,’ a late-spring flowering selection introduced by renowned Dutch plantsman Piet Oudolf. Be sure to deadhead spent flower stalks to encourage a second flush of blooms.
Bee balms, mountain mints, giant hyssops, and hedgenettles are but a few of the mints that can add color and diversity to your garden. Catmint (Nepeta spp.), Lavender (Lavandula spp.), Salvia (Salvia spp.), Skullcap (Scutellaria spp.), and obedient plant (Physostegia spp.) are other perennial genera to explore. They are guaranteed to delight, enchant, and engage with every garden visitor from humans to insects to birds — except deer!
Ulrich Lorimer is the director of horticulture at the Native Plant Trust in Framingham. Send your gardening questions, along with your name/initials and hometown, to [email protected]g.
