11/27/2023 0 Comments Mountain mint plantPhoto 5: The linear sessile leaves have parallel secondary venation, as best shown by the upper surface of the second leaf from left that leaf is 1⅞ inch long and 3/16 wide).įlowering occurs in June into July. Plants are usually much less aromatic than other members of the genus. Rubbed or even crushed leaves can be nearly scentless or with a mild minty scent caused by pulegone. Margins are entire (smooth) and slightly revolute (downturned). Leaves have a slightly recessed upper midrib and an expressed lower midrib with an obscure pair of parallel secondary veins on each side. From mid-leaf, the long-tapering margins extend to a more or less sharp tip a shorter taper extends to a blunt sessile base. Larger leaves may be 2 inches long and less than ¼ inch wide, widest at or just below mid-leaf. Photo – April 2.Īll leaves are simple and linear. Photo 4: With stems beginning to branch along their upper portion, colonies are leafy with an airy appearance. Stems are slender––near the ground, ⅛ inch or less wide, becoming wiry and thread-like distally. The ascending branches (the lowermost to about 5 inches long) diverge from the stem at about 60⁰. Branching continues to the stem apex which, for a flowering stem, terminates with a single flower head. A lateral branch does not rebranch unless the stem tip has been nipped. Photo – March 19.Įrect, rigid, glabrous, typically reddish stems elongate to 2 to 3+ feet tall, with short branches in opposite decussate pairs along their upper half. Photo 3: New stems emerge while previous year’s stems still persist. New rhizomes are white, the longest one 5½ inches. ,t Photo 2: Yellow arrow indicates the “old” brown rhizome, while white arrows indicate current-year stems. A dense root mat may develop, especially in loose mesic soils. During summer months, multiple new rhizomes grow from near the end of the “old” rhizome. Rhizomes develop long fibrous roots along their distal end and, in spring, the tips of these rhizomes become emergent as single stems. New rhizomes (1/16 inch in diameter) are white, smooth, and segmented (each segment ¼ to ½ inch long), with an opposite pair of tiny triangular brown bracts subtending the segments. This herbaceous perennial grows in clonal colonies from skinny, near-surface, branching rhizomes (underground stems). Photo 1: The many, relatively small slender leaves give the plant an airy appearance. It is also known as Narrow-Leaf Mountain Mint. Habitats may be dry to wet and sunny to partially shaded, such as prairies, roadsides, and open woodlands. In Arkansas, occurrence is statewide except for limited areas near the Mississippi River. from east Texas and southeastern Nebraska to Maine and northern Georgia, excluding most of southern Georgia and Florida. The genus name is based on Greek words for “dense” and “flower.” The specific epithet is from the Latin for “slender leaved.” The species is widespread across the eastern U.S. Try planting near its cousins, monarda, clinopodium, and conradina to make your own herbal tea garden.Slender Mountain Mint ( Pycnanthemum tenuifolium) of the Mint (Lamiaceae/Labiatae) family is a rhizomatous plant with narrow, linear leaves that give the plant an attractive, airy appearance. While butterflies ignore the repellent leaves, they love to visit the flowers as do an incredible array of amazing insects. Pycnanthemum sap is a natural insect repellent (especially the aforementioned Pycnanthemum muticum) and can be rubbed on the skin or stuffed into a pocket. While most species are quite stoloniferous, we have selected only those that play well with others by not spreading uncontrollably. In the garden, pycnanthemum is much more attractive in part to full sun. It likes to have consistent water early on in the growing season but, as summer progresses, it will become more drought-tolerant. In the wild, mountain mint thrives in woodlands with partial shade in a wide variety of soil types. Pycanthemum (Mountain Mint) Growing Conditions All of the mountain mints have a strong mint scent and are commonly used to make tea (all except Pycnanthemum muticum, which although minty is also toxic). The mint family genus Pycnanthemum is fairly small, containing around 20 species, all of which are native to North America.
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