ANNOUNCING THE 2025

PERENNIAL PLANT OF THE YEAR®

(Chosen by the Perennial Plant Association and all information from their report) 

Pycnathemum muticum

(Clustered Mountainmint)

Photography Credit: Chicago Botanic Garden

Clustered mountainmint (also known as blunt mountainmint or short-toothed mountainmint) is a tough and adaptable perennial native to meadows and open woodlands across much of the eastern United States west to Texas. It is not a true mint (Mentha spp.) but belongs to the same family and has similarly scented leaves. A must-have for pollinator gardens, heads of tiny white to light pink blooms attract butterflies, wasps, and bees from July to September. The inconspicuous flowers are upstaged by surrounding silver bracts, which give the illusion of frost in summer and persist for months. Clustered mountainmint has no serious disease issues, and its aromatic foliage is unpalatable to deer and rabbits.

Branched, vertical stems grow two to three feet tall and form a dense, weed-suppressing clump. Clustered mountainmint spreads by underground rhizomes and can be aggressive in moist conditions, though it is not invasive to the degree of true mints.

Site clustered mountainmint in an area where it can freely naturalize and mingle among other plants. Its silver sheen plays well with other flower colors and contrasts wonderfully with dark foliage. Companions include black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia spp.), bee balms (Monarda spp.), blazing stars (Liatris spp.), Joe Pye weeds (Eutrochium spp.), and native grasses such as little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum).

Photography Credit: Chicago Botanic Garden

• Pot in fall to bulk/overwinter for early spring sales.
• Pot in early spring for late spring/early summer sales (does not require vernalization).
• Finishing schedule for 1 gal: 4 to 6 weeks from a 32 cell liner; 6 to 9 weeks from a 50 or a 72.
• Shear in spring (repeatedly, if necessary).

Reprinted from Perennial Plant Association Inc.   (NOT AFFILIATED WITH GEORGIA PERENNIAL PLANT ASSOCIATION)

Prior Selections

Selections in color link to articles about the plant.

What's your experience with any of the above plants in our area?  Post in Comments below.  Have a lot to say about any, maybe you'd write an article for us?  Contact Us