By Dave Crawford and Dawn Lamm

Editor’s note: With this issue the Bugle launches a new column, the Minnesota Native Plant of the Month. The contribution comes from the Como Community Seed Library. CCSL was founded in 2015 to provide community access to free organic seed and garden education. CCSL is based in Como Park and serves all of St. Paul and its surrounding communities.

Blue Giant Hyssop

Scientific name: Agastache foeniculum

Dakota name: Waḣpe yáṭaṭ pi

Anishinaabe name: Zhiishiigwaandag

The blue giant hyssop, also called anise hyssop, is native to most counties north of the Minnesota River and scattered counties in the rest of the state.

One of the many native members of the mint family, this hyssop is a favorite of bees, butterflies and birds. Clustered spikes of pale purple flowers that bloom from July through October provide nectar and pollen for many species of bees and other pollinators. The seeds are a source of nutritious food for migratory and overwintering birds.

This perennial member of the mint family thrives in sunnier gardens and meadows that have regular soil disturbance (such as wind, rain, tillage and fertilizer application). It will tolerate a wide range of soil types, moisture and sunlight and will withstand periods of drought once established. It seeds itself freely, but doesn’t spread aggressively by underground rhizomes the way that spearmint and other mints can.

At 2 to 5 feet, this plant can add height to any garden.

For the Dakota and Anishinaabe people, blue giant hyssop has a variety of medicinal and spiritual uses.

Harvest its flowers and leaves early on a dry morning when the flowers are in full bloom. Dry in a warm dark area with good air circulation. Blue giant hyssop is not the same species as the non-native, slightly bitter hyssopus officinalis found in herb gardens.

The sweet anise fragrance of the leaves makes a wonderful tea or you can create this simple syrup from flowers and leaves plus vanilla that will have more of a root beer flavor profile. The tea can be very soothing to a sore throat.

Anise Hyssop Vanilla Simple Syrup

Ingredients

  1 cup filtered water

  1 cup organic sugar

  1 cup dried anise hyssop leaves and flowers

  1 tsp vanilla extract or seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean.

In a small saucepan bring the water and sugar to a boil then add the anise hyssop. Stir, then remove from heat. Steep while the syrup cools, then strain the leaves and flowers. Stir in the vanilla and store in a clean airtight jar in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

This syrup can be used to flavor a variety of beverages or can be laced over ice cream, fruit or other deserts.

By including this soothing native mint in your garden and in your pantry, you are rooting yourself in a particular place and time that can be tapped throughout the year. The advantages of planting anise hyssop as well as other native plants and advocating for natives in the landscapes we steward is an act of kindness to our neighbors, pollinators, the land and the planet on which we live. 

Dave Crawford is a former park naturalist with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Dawn Lamm is the founder and organizer of the Como Community Seed Library.

Photo Caption: The blue giant hyssop is in found in most counties north of the Minnesota River. Photo by Dave Crawford.