Anise Hyssop, not to be confused with the spices Anise and Star Anise, is a mint family herb with an attractive scent and flavor for tea lovers who also appreciate licorice. It’s puffy lavender flower spikes dry very well, but their longstanding nature in bloom, not just in drying, is especially critical.

A mature Anise Hyssop plant can feed a wide array of pollinators for the bulk of the summer and, often, into the autumn. On our farm, bumble bee populations have boomed since their introduction. As summer wanes and pollen sources begin to dissipate, the bumbles love for this flower grows to an obsession. Our area honey bees also take a liking to the many flower stalks of Anise Hyssop, and coupling this herb with Milkweed and Joe Pye provides thorough source of vital native plants for the Monarch.

Agastache Foeniculum re-emerges each spring with leaves that are initially almost velvet in texture, and tinged with a deep purple fading into blue-green centers. Within weeks, the leaf stalks rise and the heart-shaped, toothed leaves take on their season long deep-green color.

There isn’t much that isn’t attractive about Anise Hyssop, and if you really love it you’ll be pleased that it often self sows. Surely, your local pollinators will be.

Care: Anise Hyssop is native to the most of the Northern US states, and southern Canada. As such, it thrives best in areas with mild summers, where it can bloom for months, but it will perform well in all but the hottest regions. Drought is generally not an issue, as the long tap root of this perennial serves it very well through the dry season.

While our farm is located in a relatively wet area, we generally have a 2 to 3 week rain-free period in mid summer that these plants just shrug off. As such, it also goes with saying that Anise Hyssop requires well drained soil to be happy, and therefore make your bees happy.

Particularly rich soil is unnecessary, but Agastache Foeniculum does seem very gracious to receive a light mulching and/or compost layer, periodically. It will happily populate your garden.

Bonus Tip: In mid-spring, cut back Anise Hyssop to approximately 1 foot in height. This will encourage it to branch out more and produce more flower spikes.