Agastache foeniculum

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Agastache foeniculum
Bumblebees on anise hyssop.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Agastache
Species:
A. foeniculum
Binomial name
Agastache foeniculum

Agastache foeniculum (syn. Agastache anethiodora (Nutt.) Britton), commonly called anise hyssop, blue giant hyssop, Fragrant giant hyssop, or the lavender giant hyssop, is a species of perennial plant in the mint family, (Lamiaceae). This plant is native to much of north-central and northern North America. It is tolerant of deer and drought, and is visited by many pollinators.

Contents

Description

This species grows from 2–4 feet (61–122 centimetres) tall and 1 ft (30 cm) wide, in a clump-like, upright shape, with flowers appearing in showy verticillasters, or false whorls, and occasionally branching at the apex. [2] The leaves have an oval, toothed shape with a white tint underneath. The plant blooms in June to September with bright lavender flowers that become more colorful near the tip. [3] [4] One plant may produce upwards of 90,000 individual flowers. [5] The root system produces a taproot. [2]

Similar species

A. foeniculum can be confused with A. rugosa [6] and A. scrophulariifolia . [7] Anise hyssop is in the same family as hyssop (the mint family Lamiaceae), but they are not closely related. Hyssop ( Hyssopus ) is a genus of about 10–12 species of herbaceous or semi-woody plants native from the east Mediterranean to central Asia. [1]

Distribution and habitat

The plant is native to much of north-central and northern North America, notably the Great Plains and other prairies. [1] [8]

Ecology

The species is tolerant of deer and drought, and attracts various potential pollinators, including hummingbirds, butterflies, [3] bumblebees, honey bees, carpenter bees, and night flying moths. [9] Honey bees make a light fragrant honey from the flower's nectar. [10]

A bumblebee feeding on the white flowers of an anise hyssop plant White Agastache foeniculum with bumblebee.jpg
A bumblebee feeding on the white flowers of an anise hyssop plant

Anise hyssop is considered one of the premier plants for feeding pollinators. The 1969 edition of the Rodale's Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening claims that one acre planted in anise hyssop can support 100 honeybee hives, the flowers blooming for a very long season, often from June until frost and during the time it blooms, one can see bees on the flowers from the morning until dusk. [11] A horticultural writer has claimed that the many flowers of the plant provide forage for bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. [12]

Uses

Anise hyssop was used medicinally by Native Americans for cough, fevers, wounds, and diarrhea.[ citation needed ] The soft, anise-scented leaves [4] are used as a seasoning, as a tea, in potpourri, and can be crumbled in salad.

Related Research Articles

<i>Hyssopus</i> (plant) Genus of flowering plants in the mint and sage family Lamiaceae

Hyssopus (hyssop) is a genus of herbaceous or semi-woody plants in the family Lamiaceae, native from the east Mediterranean to central Asia as far east as Mongolia. They are aromatic, with erect branched stems up to 60 cm long covered with fine hairs at the tips. The leaves are narrow oblong, 2–5 cm long. The small blue flowers are borne on the upper part of the branches during summer. By far the best-known species is the herb hyssop, widely cultivated outside its native area in the Mediterranean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pollinator</span> Animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma

A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains.

<i>Gelsemium sempervirens</i> Species of plant

Gelsemium sempervirens is a twining vine in the family Gelsemiaceae, native to subtropical and tropical America: Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, Mexico, and southeastern and south-central United States. It has a number of common names including yellow jessamine or confederate jessamine or jasmine, Carolina jasmine or jessamine, evening trumpetflower, gelsemium and woodbine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nectar source</span> Flowering plant that produces nectar

A nectar source is a flowering plant that produces nectar as part of its reproductive strategy. These plants create nectar, which attract pollinating insects and sometimes other animals such as birds.

<i>Lavandula angustifolia</i> Species of plant

Lavandula angustifolia, formerly L. officinalis, is a flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae, native to the Mediterranean. Its common names include lavender, true lavender and English lavender ; also garden lavender, common lavender and narrow-leaved lavender.

<i>Agastache</i> Genus of flowering plants

Agastache is a genus of aromatic flowering herbaceous perennial plants in the family Lamiaceae. It contains 22 species, mainly native to North America, one species native to eastern Asia. The common names of the species are a variety of fairly ambiguous and confusing "hyssops" and "mints"; as a whole the genus is known as giant hyssops or hummingbird mints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nectar</span> Sugar-rich liquid produced by many flowering plants, that attracts pollinators and insects

Nectar is a viscous, sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists, which in turn provide herbivore protection. Common nectar-consuming pollinators include mosquitoes, hoverflies, wasps, bees, butterflies and moths, hummingbirds, honeyeaters and bats. Nectar plays a crucial role in the foraging economics and evolution of nectar-eating species; for example, nectar foraging behavior is largely responsible for the divergent evolution of the African honey bee, A. m. scutellata and the western honey bee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edible flower</span> Flowers that may be consumed safely

Edible flowers are flowers that can be consumed safely. Flowers may be eaten as vegetables as a main part of a meal, or may be used as herbs. Flowers are part of many regional cuisines, including Asian, European, and Middle Eastern cuisines.

<i>Agastache rugosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Agastache rugosa, also known as wrinkled giant hyssop, Korean mint, purple giant hyssop, Indian mint and Chinese patchouli is an aromatic herb in the mint family, native to East Asia.

<i>Monarda fistulosa</i> Species of flowering plant

Monarda fistulosa, the wild bergamot or bee balm, is a wildflower in the mint family Lamiaceae, widespread and abundant as a native plant in much of North America. This plant, with showy summer-blooming pink to lavender flowers, is often used as a honey plant, medicinal plant, and garden ornamental. The species is quite variable, and several subspecies or varieties have been recognized within it.

<i>Agastache rupestris</i> Species of plant

Agastache rupestris, known as the threadleaf giant hyssop, Mexican Hyssop, or licorice mint, is a wildflower of the mint family (Lamiaceae) native to the mountains of Arizona, New Mexico, and Chihuahua, Mexico. Popular in xeriscaping because of its heat tolerance and ability to thrive in dry, nutrient-poor soil, it is often planted in containers or as a border flower and used to attract hummingbirds. Displaying gray-green stems and leaves while dormant, its orange flowers with purple buds bloom from mid-summer until fall; if crushed the petals exude a pleasant scent.

<i>Cirsium discolor</i> Species of thistle

Cirsium discolor, the field thistle, is a North American species of plants in the tribe Cardueae within the family Asteraceae. It is native to thirty-three states in the United States as well four Canadian provinces. It occurs across much of eastern and central Canada as well as eastern and central United States. It has been found from New Brunswick west to Saskatchewan and south as far as Texas and Georgia.

<i>Agastache urticifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Agastache urticifolia is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name nettleleaf giant hyssop or horse mint.

<i>Hyssopus officinalis</i> Species of plant

Hyssopus officinalis or hyssop is a shrub in the Lamiaceae or mint family native to Southern Europe, the Middle East, and the region surrounding the Caspian Sea. Due to its purported properties as an antiseptic, cough reliever, and expectorant, it has been used in traditional herbal medicine.

<i>Agastache wrightii</i> Species of flowering plant

Agastache wrightii is a plant species in the genus Agastache, family Lamiaceae. It is native to the US states of Arizona and New Mexico, as well as the Sierra Madre Occidental along the boundary between the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora. Its common name is Sonoran giant hyssop.

<i>Agastache scrophulariifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Agastache scrophulariifolia, also known as the purple giant hyssop, is a perennial plant that grows throughout the US and northern Ontario, Canada. Its name comes from the similarity of its leaves to plants of the genus Scrophularia. It is a beneficial plant to pollinators and is noted for its medicinal properties, as many plants in the mint family are. It tends to grow in disturbed or open areas where it does not have to interact with non-native competitive plants.

<i>Teucrium canadense</i> Species of herb

Teucrium canadense, commonly known as Canada germander, American germander, or wood sage, is a perennial herb in the family Lamiaceae. It is native to North America where it is found across the contiguous states of the United States and in much of Canada.

<i>Agastache nepetoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Agastache nepetoides, commonly known as yellow giant hyssop, is a perennial flowering plant native to the central and eastern United States and Canada. It is a member of the Lamiaceae (mint) family.

References

  1. 1 2 3 USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Agastache foeniculum". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team.
  2. 1 2 Hilty, John (2020). "Anise hyssop". Illinois Wildflowers. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Agastache foeniculum". Missouri Botanical Gardens. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  4. 1 2 "Agastache foeniculum (Anise hyssop)". Fine Gardening. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  5. Pan, Ziliang. "Bee Visitation and Nectar Production of Anise Hyssop" (PDF). Retrieved 16 August 2019.
  6. Roger Guillermo Fuentes-Granados. "Genetic Studies of Agastache." Iowa State University PhD dissertation. 1997. p. 14. doi : 10.31274/rtd-180813-13259
  7. Arthur O. Tucker and Thomas DeBaggio, The Encyclopedia of Herbs: A Comprehensive Reference to Herbs of Flavor and Fragrance. Timber Press, 2009. p. 127. ISBN   9781604691344
  8. "Agastache foeniculum". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
  9. Ayers, George (July 1994). "The Genus Agastache as Bee Forage: An Analysis of Reader Returns". American Bee Journal (134): 480–482.
  10. "Herbs"; Smithsonian Handbook - Lesley Bremness
  11. Rodale, J.I. (1969). The Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening. Emmaus Pennasylvania. pp. 522–523.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  12. Kagan, Carol. "Anise Hyssop for the Perennial Garden". PennState Extension. Retrieved 13 August 2019.