Plant Guide

Other Names:  Anise Hyssop, Licorice Mint, Hummingbird Mint

Brand:  Walters Gardens

Description:

A lovely upright perennial with beautiful anise-scented leaves and indigo-blue blooms from midsummer to fall; drought tolerant once established, a perfect addition to rock gardens, borders and containers; great cut and dried flower quality

Ornamental Features

Blue Bayou Anise Hyssop has masses of beautiful spikes of lightly-scented indigo flowers rising above the foliage from mid summer to mid fall, which are most effective when planted in groupings. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive fragrant pointy leaves remain dark green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Blue Bayou Anise Hyssop is a dense herbaceous perennial with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting bees, butterflies and hummingbirds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Self-Seeding

Blue Bayou Anise Hyssop is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Herb Gardens
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Blue Bayou Anise Hyssop will grow to be about 16 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 18 inches. It tends to be leggy, with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and should be underplanted with lower-growing perennials. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 6 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. This plant should not require much in the way of fertilizing once established, although it may appreciate a shot of general-purpose fertilizer from time to time early in the growing season. It is not particular as to soil type, but has a definite preference for alkaline soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Blue Bayou Anise Hyssop is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers and foliage against which the larger thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.