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Home  /  Plants  /  Budburst Species  /  Monarda punctata

COMMON NAME

Spotted horsemint

SCIENTIFIC NAME

Monarda punctata

ALSO KNOWN AS

Dotted horse mint, spotted bee balm, horsemint

Plant family

Mint (Lamiaceae)

Plant group

Wildflowers and Herbs

A clump-forming, herbaceous perennial that grows 1-3' tall, with large showy whitish or purplish bracts subtending each cluster of flowers.
28 reports
6+
OBSERVERS
28+
OBSERVATIONS
!

Identification hints

While most other Monarda species have a single cluster of flowers on a stem, Monarda punctata flower clusters are stacked atop one another on a stem. Leaves are aromatic when crushed, smelling like mint.
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Did you know?

This plant contains thymol, an antiseptic and fungicide. It also attracts many pollinators including hummingbirds, butterflies, and wasps.
DISTRIBUTION IN TH U.S.
Alabama , Arkansas , California , Connecticut , District of Columbia , Delaware , Florida , Georgia , Iowa , Illinois , Indiana , Kansas , Kentucky , Louisiana , Massachusetts , Maryland , Michigan , Minnesota , Missouri , Mississippi , North Carolina , New Jersey , New Mexico , New York , Ohio , Oklahoma , Pennsylvania , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas , Virginia , Vermont , Wisconsin
HABITAT
Grows in dry, sandy soils in prairies, plains, meadows, and savannas.
ATTRIBUTES
Leaves
Leaves are as long as 3", oblong, toothed, and growing opposite one another on square stems.
Flowers
Flower clusters are composed of many two-lipped yellow flowers with purple spots. Each cluster of flowers rests upon a showy whorl of whitish or purplish bracts.
Fruits
Fruit is a dark brown nutlet.
Bloom Time
Blooms May through August

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