Agastache nepetoides, Giant Yellow Hyssop, Quart pot, Second year plant

Agastache nepetoides, Giant Yellow Hyssop

FS - PS, Zone 2, Blooms July - September, 4-7’ x 1-3’, medium moist, deer resistant.

Giant Yellow Hyssop is a member of the mint family and a strong grower. It grows best in open woodlands, fields, and riverbanks and thrives in rich soil. It grows by both rhizomes and fibrous roots. First year plants grown from seed will bloom and reach about 3-4’ tall. The following year, this perennial will grow more robust, upwards to 6-7’ tall, and will produce seedlings. The flower spires are densely packed with tiny floret blooms that open just a couple at a time, with a minimum bloom period of around two months.

Once established, Giant Yellow Hyssop is fairly drought resistant and can develop into small attractive colonies. The leaves, which do not smell like other plants in the mint family, have a bitter taste that rabbits and deer avoid.

Giant Yellow Hyssop attracts bumblebees, native bees and honey bees, which all visit for its rich nectar, and different species of Syrphid flies that relish its pollen.