Monarda didyma

Monarda didyma: Shaggy Scarlet Crowns for Moist Ground

Scarlet Bee Balm is a native in shaggy red that looks like it styled its hair in a wind tunnel. The hummingbirds see it and lose all composure. RED ALERT IN THE PERENNIAL BED.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Monarda didyma
• Common Name: Scarlet Bee Balm, Oswego Tea, Bergamot
• Height: 60–120 cm (2–4 ft)
• Spread: 60–90 cm (2–3 ft)
• Flowers: Bright scarlet-red, tubular, 3–4 cm (1–1.5 in) long, in shaggy round heads over reddish bracts
• Bloom Time: Early to late summer (June to August)
• Foliage: Dark green, toothed and aromatic, on square stems
• Features: Rabbit resistant, fragrant foliage, good cut flower

Where to Plant: Use it in the middle or back of a sunny border, in a pollinator or cottage garden, or along the moist edge of a rain garden. It spreads by shallow runners into a wide patch, so give it room to naturalize rather than a tiny, formal bed.

Companion Plants: Iris 'Black Joker' flowers deep purple at 48 to 50 cm in May and June, and its upright leaves stay neat beside the bee balm. Symphyotrichum novae-angliae rises to 90 to 180 cm with purple asters in August and September, after the red flowers fade. Calamintha 'White Cloud' softens the front with a white haze at 30 to 60 cm from June to September. All three thrive in full sun or part sun.

Plant Care: Plant it in full sun to part sun, in rich soil that stays evenly moist. Scarlet bee balm sulks in dry soil and is prone to powdery mildew, especially when it's thirsty or crowded. Water deeply in dry spells, water the soil rather than the leaves, and give it room for air to move. Mildew is mostly cosmetic and rarely harms the plant. Deadhead to stretch out the bloom. Cut it back in late fall or early spring. Divide every two to three years in spring, replanting the vigorous outer pieces and pulling runners that wander too far.

History: Scarlet bee balm grows wild in moist woods, thickets and streambanks of eastern North America, from Maine and southern Ontario south to the mountains of Georgia. The name Oswego tea comes from the Indigenous people around Oswego, New York, who brewed its leaves.

Final Thoughts: Fragrant leaves, deer and rabbit resistant, and a cut flower that makes the kitchen smell amazing. THE HUMMINGBIRDS ALREADY RSVP'D.