GardenPerennial Herb · zones 4–9 · 21 varieties
Bee Balm
Monarda didyma
Lamiaceae — the same plant family as english lavender, basil, mint, rosemary and 11 more here. Relatives share pests and diseases, which is why rotation plans group by family.
Bee Balm (Monarda didyma) is a perennial herb for USDA zones 4–9. It wants full sun and pH 6–8 soil, with about 1–1.5 in of water weekly. It matures in about 100–130 days from sowing, or 70–90 days from setting out a transplant. Watch for aphids and powdery mildew. Below: its full sourced profile from 4 extension sources, plus a planting calendar timed to your frost dates.
Typical dates for zone 6b — set your zone or ZIP for yours. This calendar assumes the crop is started indoors. Timing is a guide from the crop's sourced growth stages; confirm with your local frost dates and extension before you sow.
What we will not put a number on
We do not give a feeding rate for this crop, and that is deliberate rather than a gap. The figures published by extension services are pounds of nitrogen per acre for a production field — they do not convert safely to a raised bed or a pot without knowing your soil test and your fertilizer's analysis, and guessing errs toward burning roots. It is also why every chart you find online disagrees with the next one.
We give watering as a depth per week rather than gallons per plant, because that is how it is actually measured and how the published figures are written. A gallons-per-plant number depends on your spacing, your soil and whether the plant is in a pot — so it would look more precise than it is.
Site & soil
- Hardiness zones
- 4–9
- Sun
- Full sun
- Soil pH
- 6–8
- Soil texture
- Clay, High organic matter
- Frost tolerance
- Very hardy
No published figure for the temperature frost starts to hurt it and the temperature that would kill it. We looked — where a number is missing here it is missing from the research, not skipped. The crop’s frost and heat tolerance above still applies.
The plant
- Mature height
- 2–4 ft
- Mature spread
- 2–3 ft
- Growth rate
- Moderateest
- Spacing in row
- 12–36 in
- Between rows
- 24–36 inest
- Planting depth
- 0–0.25 inest
- Container size
- 2–5 gal — low end is the minimum, high end is betterest
- Support
- Self-supportingest
- Grown from
- Division, Seed, Cutting
Water & feeding
- Water needs
- Moderate
- Water per week
- 1–1.5 in/wkest
- Critical water
- Establishment, Vegetativeest
- Feeding
- Moderate
Timing & fruiting
- Days to maturity
- 100–130 days from seed · 70–90 days from transplantest
- Harvest cues
- Rapid leaf growth, First flowers
Planted again for autumn
- Set plants out by
- mid Aug typical · zone 6b
70 days to maturity from setting a plant out — that is what our sources measure for this crop, so this is a date for planting out and not a sowing date, counted back from the first frost above. Not published for anywhere in particular: it is your own frost date and this crop's own figure, which is why it works wherever you are. A days-to-maturity figure is a catalog number for a good season rather than a promise, and a cold month moves it.
Edible parts per source: flower, leaf.
Compiled from the extensions cited below. Which ones actually show up depends on your region — your extension's local list is the last word.
| Variety | Type | Habit | Days | Color | What it is known for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balmy Lilac | Hybrid | Dwarf | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Balmy Purple | Hybrid | Dwarf | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Balmy Rose | Hybrid | Dwarf | 70–90 | Pink | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Blue Stocking Heirloom | Spreading | 70–90 | Blue | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Cambridge Scarlet Heirloom | Hybrid | Upright | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Claire Grace | Monarda Fistulosa | Upright | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Colrain Red | Upright | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Fireball | Spreading | 70–90 | Red | Missouri Botanical Garden describes this assmall enough for a pot | |
| Gardenview Scarlet Heirloom | Spreading | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Jacob Cline | Monarda Didyma | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Leading Lady Plum | Hybrid | Dwarf | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Marshall's Delight | Hybrid | Mounding | 70–90 | Pink | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| On Parade | Hybrid | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Panorama Mix | Hybrid | 70–90 | Bicolor | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Peter's Purple | Hybrid | Upright | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Petite Delight | Hybrid | Dwarf | 70–90 | Bicolor | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Prairie Night Heirloom | Spreading | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Purple Rooster | Monarda Didyma | Upright | 70–90 | Purple | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Raspberry Wine | Spreading | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible | |
| Sugar Buzz Cherry Pops | Hybrid | Upright | 70–90 | Red | Iowa State University Extension and Outreach records this asdraws hummingbirds · draws bees and butterflies · deer usually leave it alone · rabbits usually leave it alone · the flowers are edible |
| Wild Bergamot | Monarda Fistulosa | Upright | 70–90 | Purple | Prairie Nursery describes this asdraws bees and butterflies |
- Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- NC State Extension
- University of Illinois Extension
We compile bare facts from these university-extension and horticultural sources, never copied prose. 12 of the 20 values on this page carry a citation. The rest are marked est; hover one and it says why — either nobody publishes a figure we could point at, or a person set it and attached no source. Figures vary with climate and seed source; confirm with your local extension before you buy.
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