Monarda Didyma Pardon My Purple 17Cm Pot

Description

Common Name: Bee Balm
 

No room for the tall, bushy, traditional Bee Balm in your garden?  Now there’s a petite selection that’s easy to tuck into the front of your sunny border and combination containers.  Reaching just a foot tall at maturity, this compact selection forms a well-branched clump of deep green, glossy foliage. 

From mid through late summer, fuchsia purple flowers sit just at the top of the foliage. Though the plant may be dwarf, the flowers are the same size as taller selections, measuring a full 2½ - 3 inches across.  They add a cool splash of colour to the border in high summer. 

This new selection also offers good resistance to powdery mildew, a problem with many older Bee Balms.  Just provide good air circulation, sunshine, and plenty of water and these plants will thrive!

Though this plant is listed as hardy in zones 4-9, it may prove to be a bit colder tolerant than that.  If you are in a borderline 3/4 hardiness zone, you may want to give this plant a try!

Monarda is native to eastern North America, so it is easy to grow and it multiplies quickly. The flowers' sweet nectar attracts scores of hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees to the garden. The aromatic foliage smells like mint when crushed and is often used to flavour teas.

How to Grow

Monarda can be found naturally along riverbanks and enjoys this rich, organic, moist soil. However, it will grow in average soil as well. Full sun is best, but the light shade is tolerated. Plants tend to spread more quickly in the shade, however.

Most monardas multiply rapidly either by underground stems or self-sowing.  Deadheading spent blooms will prolong the bloom time.

Powdery mildew is a common fungal problem with monarda. Some varieties are more resistant to it than others. To prevent this fungus from appearing, large clumps should be thinned out so that the air circulates freely around them. The soil should also be kept consistently moist; dry soil promotes powdery mildew.