Hoary Mountain Mint, Silverleaf Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum incanum (L.) Michx.)

Lamiaceae (Mint Family)

USDA Native Status: Native to U.S.

This stiff, erect, clump-forming mint has whitened leaves subtending the flower clusters. The minty-smelling plants are 3-6 ft. tall and have terminal flower clusters composed of numerous, small, two-lipped corollas varying from whitish to lavender, with purple spots. Small, white to lavender flowers in dense rounded clusters in leaf axils or atop a hairy square stem and branches; white bracts beneath flowers.

Photographic Location: Long Hunter State Park, Middle TN

The genus name derives from the Greek for dense and flower and aptly describes the crowded flower clusters. The many species are closely related and difficult to distinguish from one another. These plants, particularly the flower clusters, have a very strong odor when crushed.