Anise Hyssop

31.07.2023 - 12:39 / hgic.clemson.edu / Barbara H Smith

Anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) is a wonderful native perennial to add to your pollinator garden, perfect for attracting hummingbirds, bees, wasps, butterflies, and other pollinating insects.

When in bloom, anise hyssop is a hum of insect activity, and hummingbirds frequently visit it. The hyssop flowers in my landscape are filled with small bees and syrphid flies.

As it is in the mint family, plant it in an area where you don’t mind it spreading. Anise hyssop tends to be a short-lived perennial and is not as aggressive as other mints. It will spread by rhizomes and seeds, but every few years, I have to replenish my plantings. You can always tell if a plant is in the mint family (Lamiaceae) by the square stem. The leaves are opposite of each other on the stem, and when crushed, they give off an anise or licorice fragrance, thus the common name.

It is best planted in full sun to part shade in well-drained, moist soil and is hardy in USDA planting zones 4 to 8. Anise hyssop will be susceptible to crown or root rot in soils that stay too wet. It will mature at 2 to 4 feet high and 1 to 3 feet wide. Anise hyssop is susceptible to powdery mildew and fungal leaf spots, so plant where you have good air circulation.

The unscented bloom spikes are made up of tiny lavender or purple two-lipped, cylindrical flowers, blooming from June to September. Deadheading spent flowers will encourage new bloom spikes.

By August or September, I stop deadheading the spent flowers so seeds can form to feed the birds. The dried seed heads provide a winter food source for small songbirds, especially goldfinches.

Do not cut back the dead plant stalks after a hard frost or freeze. Leave the stalks and seed heads during the winter. In the spring, when