Dotted Horsemint (Monarda punctata L.)

While everything else in the Central Florida Garden is either rotten from flooding or wilted from extreme heat, this dotted horsemint (Monarda punctata L.) thrives.

I once thought the leaves smelled like basil but now I supoose they are a musky mint. The plant looks very similar to peppermint. I once told people it was a weed. Now in late August after a week with 20.00+ inches rain and now a week where temperatures are almost always near 100 F. . . .I'm calling this my favorite plant.

So, besides being the toughest plant in the Central Florida Garden in August, what can one do with all their dotted horsemint? A little research revealed that there were a number of ethnobotanic uses by native Americans.

Dotted horsemint was used by the Meskwaki to treat colds and catarrh in a mixture with the leaves of Ranunculus delphinifolius and the disk florets of Helenium autumnale. This plant, along with other plants were ground into a powder and snuffed up the nostrils to relieve a sick headache. Taken with the roots of Asarum canadense, Euphorbia corollata, and Brauneria angustifolia these plants relieved stomach cramps. The Delaware washed patients' faces with an infusion of dotted horsemint to treat skin problems. They also used an infusion of dotted horsemint to reduce fevers. The Mohegan made an infusion of the plant to reduce fevers as well. The Nanticoke used an infusion of the entire plant to treat colds. The Navajo hung the plant in the hogan for its pleasing odor.

I have a lot of this so I cannot wait to try it for some of these issues. Moreover, for the Central Florida garden, hummingbirds are attracted to the nectar of dotted horsemint blooms.