Agastache urticifolia
| Agastache urticifolia | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |   |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 4' |
| Blooms: | Late Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Shelter | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Agastache urticifolia (common name: giant hyssop)
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 warm sunny sheltered position and a well-drained soil. Succeeds in most soils.
This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10°c[3]. A plant is growing in a sunny bed at Kew Botanical gardens and appears fully hardy there[K]. This species withstands temperatures down to about -40°c when fully dormant[4].
The flowers are very attractive to bees.
Range: Western N. America - Montana to British Columbia, south to California and Colorado.
Habitat: Moist soils of open hillsides, canyons and mountain valleys, from the foothills to about 2,500 metres[5].
Edibility: Leaves[4]. No further details are given, but they are most likely to be used as an aromatic flavouring in salads and cooked foods[K].
Seed - raw or cooked[6][7][8][9][5][10]. The seed is very small and fiddly to use[K].
The dried flowers and leaves are used to make a herbal tea[9].
Medicinal: The leaves are analgesic and antirheumatic[10]. A decoction is taken internally in the treatment of rheumatism, measles, stomach pains and colds[10]. Externally, a poultice of the mashed leaves is applied to swellings[10].
Pollinators: Bees
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: A. glaucifolia. Lophanthus urticifolius.
Links
References
- ↑ Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 1. Thompson and Morgan, 1987.
- ↑ Sanders, Thomas. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge, 1926.
- ↑ Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Natural Food Institute. Wonder Crops 1987.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Davis, Ray and Frank Craighead. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers. The Riverside Press, 1963.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Yanovsky, Elias. Food Plants of the North American Indians Publication 237. US Department of Agriculture.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.