Monarda spp.

Right now my beebalms, also known as monarda are ablaze with color in the garden.

Launch Gallery

These handsome , aromatic , one-year and perennial plants have gorgeous shaggy flowerheads , which attract many pollinators , and can spring up up to 4 feet in superlative . Right now I have four wild bergamot in bloom and they are abuzz with all sort of bee , butterflies and moth , not to mention hummingbirds .

Herb Profile :

Monardaspp . , Herb of the Year 1996

Other names : Beebalm , bergamot , wild bergamot , Oswego afternoon tea , horsemint

chain of mountains : Native to North America , Canada , S to Georgia and west to Illinois ;

M. citriodorais native to southerly United States and northern Mexico

Member of the Lamiaceae ( Labiatae ) ; the mint family

Lanceolate leaves change from shiny to grey green , most are toothed . Inimitable , bushy prime headspring seem on curl : M. didymaare scarlet red;M. fistulosaare lavender to pink;M.xmediaare rosebush , cherry or purple;M. punctataare pale yellow with purple blot ; the annualM. citriodoraranges from lavender to white .

Monardas want sun , M. didymaandM.xmediaprefer well - run out loamy dirt a bit moist , whileM. fistulosaandM. punctatalike an alkaline soil a bit dry ; some mintage hardy to zone 4,M. citriodorato zone 7 . My patch of ruby red bee balm ( M. didyma)has spread over the years and is about 10 - by 15- feet with bloom reaching about 36 - to 48 - inches in height . The hummingbird specially lie with this plant and no wonder as the blooms taste rather like tea - flavored honeysuckle .

This twelvemonth theM. fistulosais honking . I had two or three plants in a bottom near the drive and they sort of stayed about 3 - foot in pinnacle and did n’t spread too much . There was a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree there , which we had to remove last twelvemonth and those plant life have taken off with the newfound light . It has become one huge bulk of lavender blooms which are 4 - to 6 - ft in height – I have never seen them grow quite so declamatory – I can look through them and some are above my head !

All of the beebalms , as their name imply , are not bad for relieving bee or white Anglo-Saxon Protestant stings and insect bites . Just take a few parting and hurt them and scratch them on the sting . Or better yet , make a little plaster by chewing the leaves or chopping them fine and assign them on the expanse and wrapping a fresh cloth around it to hold the macerated leaves on the spot . It will ease the painful sensation aright aside and cut the hump . Reapply as needed .

In the kitchen :

M. didymahas afternoon tea - alike fragrance and flavour reminiscent of Earl Grey tea leaf . This sweet herbaceous plant can be identified by its bright cherry-red flowers , which are wonderful with summer fruit , beverages , syrup , desserts from baked goods to ice pick and custard .

All of the other wild bergamot are very unlike in flavor ; they are savory and pungent and not to be used in sweets and sweet . M. citriodora , M. fistulosaandM.xmediacontain carvacrol and/or thymol , which ease up them the risque feel of oregano or thyme . This make them good in savory dishes where you would apply a spicy herbaceous plant - use the chop leaves and flowers in soups , sauces , marinade , beans , with egg , core , fowl , in pasta and grain salad , as garnish on pizza - not desserts .

If you do n’t have any monardas in your garden , now is the clip to plant them . They are like brightly colored firecrackers in the garden , burst with prime just in time for the Fourth of July . Have a happy and dependable holiday and savour the July 1 full moon . This is the first one this month – we will be having another full synodic month on July 31 – know as a blue synodic month when there are two full Moon in the same month !

Monarda

“ verbalise not , whisper not ,

Here bloweth thyme and bergamot orange ,

quietly on thee every hour

Secret herbs their spices shower . ”

Peeking through theMonardafistulosa, which is nearly 6-feet tall! Have you ever seen beebalm this tall?! Click on other pix to enlarge and read captions.Photo/Illustration: Tomaso

— Walter de la Mare

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