A Greene County Garden in August: Beebalm

By Margaret Donsbach Tomlinson

Beebalm, both Monarda fistulosa with its pale lavender flowers, and Monarda didyma with its bright red flowers, is a bee magnet. The leaves have a scent reminiscent of bergamot orange (Citrus bergamia), the Italian citrus fruit used to flavor Earl Grey tea, so the lavender beebalm is also called wild bergamot. Early European settlers called red beebalm Oswego tea because Native Americans used it medicinally.

Both beebalms grow 2-4 feet tall and attract hummingbirds, bees, butterflies and moths. They help support some of our native Hudson Valley bumblebees that are at risk because of habitat loss, including the northern amber bumblebee (Bombus borealis), golden northern bumblebee (Bombus fervidus), American bumblebee (Bombus pennsylvanicus), yellow-banded bumblebee (Bombus terricola), and half-black bumblebee (Bombus vagans). Gardeners who plant beebalm create oases of nectar that help these bumblebees survive.

Beebalm is also a host plant for native moths. Both types feed the caterpillars of the petite but colorful raspberry pyrausta moth (Pyrausta signatalis) and orange mint moth (Pyrausta orphisalis), as well as of the larger, more drably colored hermit sphinx moth (Sphinx eremitus), with a wingspan of more than two inches.

Because beebalm flowers are showy and distinctive, breeders have developed many cultivars and hybrids for specific garden purposes, expanding the color range and creating shorter plants to fit neatly into smaller garden spaces. Some of the newer cultivars are clump-forming and don’t spread as readily as the species, and some are resistant to powdery mildew, to which beebalm is especially susceptible if grown in crowded conditions or dry soil.

If your goal is to attract and feed pollinators, it’s usually best to stick with a native species. Breeders who focus on flower color and the size, shape and disease resistance of a plant do not usually consider the value of wildflowers to pollinators when they tinker with a plant’s genetic structure, whether through hybridizing, selective breeding or genetic manipulation. Plants bred for showier flowers must devote extra energy to producing large flower petals, and have less energy to produce the nectar that pollinators need to sustain themselves. Although they will still visit the flowers, the nectar may not be as nutritious or plentiful.

If you garden where rabbits and deer munch on plants, you’ll be happy to know that beebalm is not a favored food of theirs and is usually left alone. It’s easy to grow from seed, but needs a period of winter cold before the seeds will germinate. Sow beebalm in fall directly in the garden, or in a container of potting soil left outside over the winter, or in a container of moist soil kept in the refrigerator for a month or two to mimic the winter season. Once established, beebalm will return year after year to delight you and the pollinators who love it.

Margaret Donsbach Tomlinson enjoys gardening in Catskill. She also writes a weekly Substack series, The Generous Garden, online at mtomlinson.substack.com.