FIELD ID CHARACTERISTICS:
As a mint, stems are square in cross-section and leaves have an odor when crushed. Very slender leaves help distinguish this mountain-mint from others.
Synonym(s): Koellia flexuosa
Description: Leafy perennial herb, growing to about 0.6 m tall.
Leaves: Narrow, linear leaves are minty-fragrant when crushed.
Flowers/Fruit: Flowers are clusters of tiny white to light pink flowers at the top of the plant, appearing as a flat-topped inflorescence. Fruits are gray-brown elongated capsules holding tiny seeds. Flowers June through August; fruits September and October.
Habit and Range: Prefers damp (not wet) ground, in sunny places such as wet meadows, powerlines, edges of moist woods, but not in acidic soils. Most common in the Mountains and Piedmont; still common but less so in the Coastal Plain (rare or absent from the far eastern counties).
Taxonomic Note: Some older references had this species included within P. flexuosum.
COMMON CONFUSIONS:
Compared to Pycnanthemum flexuosum (savanna mountain-mint), Pycnanthemum tenuifolium (slender mountain-mint) has smooth stems, is shorter overall, and has much narrower, linear leaves.
Click here to view Pycnanthemum flexuosum.
Link to side-by-side comparisons page
