Putnam Park Wildflowers


Flower ID: IMG_4242.JPG-09-06-2024
Flower name (scientific): Agastache foeniculum (Pursh) Kuntze PY: 1891. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) ah-GAH-sta-kee fin-ICK-yoo-lum
Flower name (common): Blue Giant Hyssop
Family name (common): Mint
Family name (scientific): Lamiaceae
Scientific name origin:
     Genus: From the Greek words aga for good and stachys for spike, referring to the inflorescence.
    Specific epithet: From the Latin for hay, fodder, or fennel, with the latter use referring to the fragrant scent of the foliage.
Common name origin: From the color of the flowers and the size of the plant. Hyssop has different meanings depending on the initial geographic region of its first use. In the present case, the name is most likely a carry over from plants in the genus Hyssopus, which were used in medical applications. The plant Hyssopus officinalis is commonly called hyssop.
Flower description:
     Size: 0.3 to 0.4 inches (0.8 to 1.0 cm)
     Petal count: 5
     Color: blue
     Other: flower arrangement, Spike
Plant description:
     Size: 12 to 36 inches (30 to 91 cm)
     Stem hairy:
     Other:
Leaf description: attachment is opposite, type is simple
     Size:
     Color:
     Hairy:
     Other: Shape: leaf, cordate to broadly lanceolate (IL)
Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Native
Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Uncommon
Bloom time (typical): July to September
Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Perennial
Habitat: Woods, fields, prairies, sun or semi-shade, dry to moist.
Fruit:
Seed:
Importance to wildlife:
Similar species (if any): Agastache scrophulariaefolia (Purple Giant Hyssop) has a resemblance. The most direct way to differentiate the two species is to examine the calyx of each flower. A. scrophulariaefolia has a green colored calyx, whereas A. foeniculum has a calyx that is blue to lavender. The leaf undersides of A. foeniculum are white, whereas those of A. scrophulariaefolia are green.
Ethnobotany: The Chippewa prepared a medicine from the roots as a remedy for cold and chest pains. They also used the leaves to treat burns (Densmore, pp. 340, 352, 1928). In this refernce Densmore uses the old synonym name Agastache anethiodora for this plant. The Cheyenne and Cree also used this plant to prepare medicines (Moerman, pp. 51-52, 1998). Several tribes including the Winnebago, Cheyenne, Cree, and Lakota used this plant for food (Moerman, p. 52, 1998).
Latitude: 44.806542
Longitude: -91.529148
Altitude: 258.00
Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Barron, Bayfield, Burnett, Crawford, Dane, Douglas, Dunn, Marathon, Marinette, Oneida, Pierce, Polk, Portage, Rusk, Sauk, Sawyer, St. Croix, Taylor, Washburn) Click here for distribution map
In US: (CO, CT, DE, IA, IL, KY, MI, MN, MT, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, PA, SD, WA, WI, WY) Click here for distribution map
In Canada: (AB, BC, MB, NB, NT, ON, QC, SK) Click here for distribution map
References:
Synonym(s):
Basionym: Stachys foeniculum Pursh Fl. Amer. Sept. (Pursh) 2: 407 (1813).
Homotypic Synonym(s):
Heterotypic Synonym(s): Agastache anethiodora (Nutt.) Britton, Hyssopus anethiodorus Nutt., Hyssopus anisatus Nutt., Hyssopus foeniculum (Pursh) Spreng., Lophanthus anisatus Benth.
Autonym: na
Wetland Status (NC): Not listed
Wetland Status (MW): Not listed