
| Also known as: | Horsemint, Bee Balm, Mint-leaf Bea-balm |
|---|---|
| Genus: | Monarda |
| Family: | Lamiaceae (Mint) |
| Life cycle: | perennial |
| Origin: | native |
| Habitat: | sun; dry fields, prairies, along roads |
| Bloom season: | June - August |
| Plant height: | 2 to 4 feet |
| County distribution (click map to enlarge): | ![]() |
| Spotted in Ramsey County at: |
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Round cluster 1 to 2 inches across of tubular flowers, solitary at the end of branching stems arising from leaf axils. Color ranges from purple to lavender to pink, rarely white. Individual flowers have a ¼-inch wide curved lower lip and a thin straight upper lip. The upper lip has a tuft of white hairs at the tip, the lower is hairy on the underside and lobed with a short rectangular extension at the tip that is notched in 2 parts. 2 brown-tipped stamens extend beyond the tip of the upper lip. A tubular calyx holds each flower.
Leaves are coarsely toothed, 1 to 4 inches long and up to 1½ inches wide, rounded at the leaf base and tapering to a point at the tip, on leaf stalks up to 5/8 inch long. Leaves are hairy underneath and smooth or hairy on the upper surface. Attachment is opposite. The stem is a reddish brown color, square, and hairy to varying degrees.
The flowers drop off leaving the calyxes behind. Seed develops inside the calyx. The head turns dark brown as the seed ripens.
Seed is smooth, brown, oval, and just over 1 millimeter long.
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Wild Bergamot plants
branching plant structure
a patch of var. menthaefolia, in North Dakota
pink flowers
rare white flowers Except where noted, photos by K. Chayka and Peter M. Dziuk taken in Ramsey, Anoka and Dodge counties.
Have you seen this plant in Minnesota, or have any other comments about it?
Wild bergamot is a perennial, so they should bloom year after year. Weather might have an effect on how well it does, but this year they did OK around the Metro even with the drought.
Springbrook Nature Center in Fridley, MN, north of Minneapolis, has a small prairie-like area where these grow. Also this past July, I saw acres and acres of this plant along the interstate in the states south of Minnesota. It really is a gorgeous flower and a useful herb.
Just today enjoyed fields with this flower in full bloom, along with the bright Rudbeckia hirta (Black-eyed Susan) -- gorgeous flowers, gorgeous combination. We also have many patches of Monarda fistulosa growing alongside the Lake Como shoreline, thanks to restoration efforts.
There is a fair amount of this growing along the bike/walking paths north of Cedar Lake.
on: 2009-08-19 09:26:45
I've been seeing a lot of these along the Heartland Trail this year. Do they bloom every year? It seems like there are a lot of years I don't see any, then they return.