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Monarda didyma
Also called Oswego Tea, Mountain Mint, Beebalm, Bergamot, Fragrantbalm, American Beebalm, Mixed Monarda
Scarlet beebalm is a North American perennial herb in the mint family, grown for its showy red tubular flowers that attract bees and hummingbirds. It thrives in full sun and moist but well-drained soil, and is best divided every few years to keep it vigorous.
Monarda didyma, the scarlet beebalm, crimson beebalm, scarlet monarda, Eau-de-Cologne plant, Oswego tea, or bergamot, is a North American aromatic herb in the family Lamiaceae.
The species is native to eastern North America from Maine west to Ontario and Michigan, and south to northern Georgia. It is naturalized further west in the United States and in parts of Europe.
Scarlet beebalm is extensively grown as an ornamental plant, both within and outside its native range. It grows best in full sun, but tolerates light shade and thrives in any moist, but well-drained soil. Several cultivars have been selected for different flower color, ranging from white through pink to dark red and purple.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Monarda didyma by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
