Wild bergamot
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), also called bee balm, is one of the most visited pollinator plants in native seeding. Its lavender tubular flowers peak in mid-summer and draw long-tongued bumble bees, hummingbirds, and sphinx moths that shorter flowers cannot serve.
Why landowners plant wild bergamot
- Exceptional nectar volume during the mid-summer bloom gap.
- Serves long-tongued pollinators excluded from shallow composite flowers.
- Aromatic foliage is deer-resistant, unlike many prairie forbs.
- Very high seed count per pound keeps it inexpensive in mixes.
Site fit
Include on dry-mesic to mesic upland sites in CP42, CP25, CP43, and roadside plantings. It handles part shade well, so it also fits savanna and woodland-edge mixes.
Establishment
Tiny seed requiring light — surface sow and cultipack. Cold-moist stratification improves germination, so dormant seeding is preferred. Blooms in year two.
Management
Spreads modestly by rhizome, forming durable patches. Fire tolerant. Can develop powdery mildew in humid years without harming the stand.
CRP practice fit
Required or recommended mid-season bloom species in most state specs.
Standard diversity forb across mesic reconstructions.
Common prairie strip forb for beneficial insect support.
Featured mixes with wild bergamot
Pairs well with
Purple coneflower · Gray-headed coneflower · Little bluestem · Stiff goldenrod
Frequently asked questions
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) is the lavender-flowered native prairie species commonly called bee balm. Scarlet bee balm (Monarda didyma) is a moist woodland-edge relative used in gardens, not in CRP prairie mixes.
Rarely. Its aromatic mint-family foliage deters browsing, which makes it one of the more dependable forbs to include where deer pressure thins out coneflowers and other palatable species.