Page 28 - MNLGA Free State Spring 2024_WEB SPREADS

GROWING WITH EDUCATION A Ginny Rosenkranz

Native Perennials Not Dear

to Deer: Part 2

Part 1 was presented in the SPRING 2023 issue of Free State.

esigning a garden with native herbaceous Mountain Mint is known for its abundant nectar supply,
perennials can be fun, and challenging, when the inviting many species of butterflies, including easter short-
Dgarden plants also need to be able to thrive despite tailed blues, fritillaries, northern broken dash, olive and other
the hungry appetites of our native whitetail deer. Finding hairstreaks, skippers, moths, many species of bees, wasps,
native plants that thrive and bloom from the high heat of hummingbirds and many other pollinators. The fragrant
summer into the cool days of autumn and are also not flowers also attract many beneficials including ladybugs
dear to deer is also a challenge. The lists of the University and lacewings. It is also a host plant for the Gray Hairstreak
of Maryland, Cornell University, Georgia University, North Butterfly which feast on the foliage.
Carolina Extension, and Rutgers University have provided Pycnanthemum tenuifolium, or Slender Mountain Mint, also
research-based plant materials that are resistant to deer blooms from July to September, growing about the same
browsing providing that the number of deer is reasonable. height as Mountain Mint and thriving in full sun to partial
This is the third in the series of Native Perennials Not Dear to shade. However, unlike Mountain mint, this plant is more
Deer, and it covers plants that bloom from July to frost.
aggressive and has very narrow almost needle shaped
Pycnanthemum muticum, or Mountain Mint, thrives in full sun leaves. The white 2 lipped flowers are packed into dense
to partial shade and fertile, moist well-drained soils. As a clusters on top of each square stem. There are cultivars,
member of the mint family, it spreads by rhizomes, but the including ‘Campbell Carpet’, that only grow 18 inches
roots can be spade pruned in the spring to keep the plants tall to create a soft ground cover. The flowers
in place. Mountain Mint has a strong spearmint fragrance are lavender white in color, and they
and is dark green in color with a heart shaped base and mature into smoky purple seed
toothed margins. Plants grow 1-3 feet tall and wide, and heads.
bloom from July to September with fragrant soft pink to (continued on next page))
white tubular flowers packed densely in a flat-topped cluster
on each terminal stem. The flower clusters are bordered
by 2 silvery leaf like bracts near the base of each cluster.

Finding native plants that

thrive and bloom from the ... into the cool days of

high heat of summer... autumn and are not dear

to deer is a challenge.

(continued on page 48)
Blue Mist flower Conoclinium coelestinum
28 SPRING 2024• Free State News Membership Matters • SPRING 2024 29