Pycnanthemum muticum (blunt mountainmint)

Japanese name: 広葉マウンテンミント
Scientific name: Pycnanthemum muticum

[Overview]
A perennial 30–90 cm tall.
The stem is square in cross section.
Leaves are simple and opposite, ovate to elliptic-lanceolate, 3–8 cm long and 1.5–3.5 cm wide, with a pointed tip and a rounded to heart-shaped base, and are almost stalkless.
The leaf margins have low teeth.
The leaves have a strong scent similar to mint.
Flat, dense head-like clusters at the stem tips and leaf axils bear pink two-lipped flowers.
The leaf-like bracts below the inflorescence are tinged silvery white and have a velvety texture, so the whole plant looks whitish during the flowering period.

[Uses]
Native Americans used it as a folk medicine.
The leaves are made into herbal tea.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed, by division, or by shoot cuttings.
It prefers sunny, well-drained, fertile soil.
It also grows in partial shade, but flowering is poor if the site is not sunny enough.
If the environment suits it, it grows well even when left alone.
It spreads by extending underground stems, but it does not multiply too much like the mints (genus Mentha).
If this is a concern, build a frame underground to keep it from spreading.
Rainfall is sufficient unless summer brings a long spell of sunny weather and the soil dries out.
No fertilizer is particularly needed if fertilizer is applied at planting.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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