Agastache cana

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Agastache cana
Light:Full Sun
Moisture:Xeric Mesic
Hardiness:9
Soil pH:5.6-8.4
Evergreen Self Pollinated
Height:3'
Width:1'
Blooms:Mid Summer-Late Summer
Native to:
Shelter
Edible Rating:PFAF Edibility RatingPFAF Edibility Rating
Tea:Yes
Poisonous

Agastache cana (common name: hoary balm of gilead)

Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 13°c[1]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first year. Plant out in late spring or early summer[K].

Division in spring. Fairly simple, if large divisions are used it is possible to plant them straight out into their permanent positions.

Basal cuttings of young shoots in spring[2]. Harvest the young shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm tall and pot them up in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse. They should root within 3 weeks and can be planted out in the summer or following spring.

Cultivation: Prefers a sunny sheltered position and a well-drained sandy loam enriched with leaf-mould[2][3]. Best if given a hot dry position in full sun[4].

Plants are only hardy in the milder areas of Britain[2][5], tolerating temperatures down to about -5°c[3]. Another report says that they are hardy to about -20°c[4].

Plants are short-lived[5].

A good bee plant.

Range: South-western N. America - Texas to New Mexico.

Habitat: Dry slopes in the mountains[4].

Edibility: Leaves - used as a flavouring[6][7]. A very fragrant flavour[8].

Pollinators: Bees

Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.

Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.

In Leaf: Evergreen

Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Early Fall

Flower Type: Hermaphrodite

Also Known As: Cedronella cana.

Links

References

  1. Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 1. Thompson and Morgan, 1987.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Sanders, Thomas. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge, 1926.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Perennials - The Definitve Reference. Pan Books, 1991.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
  6. Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
  7. Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
  8. Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.