Downy Wood Mint, Ohio Horsemint, Downy Pagoda-Plant

Ohio horsemint is a Missouri native perennial which occurs in dryish open woods and thickets, clearings, fields and roadsides in the east...Read Moreern 2/3 of the State. A clump-forming, mint family member that features mostly unbranched, square stems which rise to 30" tall. Blue-purple, two-lipped flowers appear in late spring to mid-summer in several tiered, whorled, globular clusters in an interrupted terminal spike, with each cluster being subtended by (resting upon) a whorl of fringed bracts. Similar in appearance to the closely related monardas. Lanceolate stem leaves are sessile, lightly-toothed, whitish-downy below and mildly fragrant when crushed. Leaves are usually considered to be lacking in the pungency and quality needed for use as a culinary herb. Small basal leaves and shoots remain green throughout the winter.

This mint is not as aromatic as other mints but,it attracts butterflies and bees to the garden. The plant stands about 2 feet tall the st...Read Moreems are branched opposite.The leaves are light green,whitish downy underneath.The flowers are blue to purple. Flowers bloom from May thru September.The young shoots are edible.Gather flowers and leaves in bloom, dry for later herb use.The aromatic leaves,like peppermint, can be prepared like those of true mints but I don't think it has the culinary use as much as other mints.