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Agastache foeniculum - (Pursh.)Kuntze.

Anise Hyssop

Author	(Pursh.)Kuntze.	Botanical references	43, 200
Family	Labiatae	Genus	Agastache
Synonyms	Agastache anethiodorum - (Nutt.)Britton.
Known Hazards	None known
Range	Western N. America - Ontario to Washington, south to Colorado.
Habitat	Dry thickets, fields and waste ground[43] on prairies and plains[235].
Edibility Rating	5 (1-5)	Medicinal Rating	1 (1-5)

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.9m by 0.4m.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats

Cultivated Beds;

Cultivars: (as above except)
'Texas American'

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Leaves.

Edible Uses: Tea.

Leaves and flowers - raw or cooked. They are used as a flavouring in raw or cooked dishes[108, 177, 257]. Excellent raw, they have a sweet aniseed flavour and are one of our favourite flavourings in salads[K]. They make a delicious addition to the salad bowl[183] and can also be used to flavour cooked foods, especially acid fruits[K].The only drawback to the leaves is that they tend to have a drying effect in the mouth and so cannot be eaten in quantity[K]. A pleasant tasting tea is made from the leaves[46, 61, 161, 183].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Cardiac; Diaphoretic; Pectoral; Poultice.

The leaves are cardiac and diaphoretic[222, 238, 257]. An infusion of the leaves is used in the treatment of colds, fevers, weak heart etc[222]. When left to go cold, the infusion is used to treat pains in the chest (such as when the lungs are sore from too much coughing)[207]. A poultice of leaves and stems can be used to treat burns[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Prefers a sunny position and a dry well-drained soil[187, 200]. This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10°c[200]. The young growth in spring is very susceptible to slug damage[K]. The flowering plants are very attractive to bees and butterflies[K]. There is at least one named variety. 'Texas American' has an anise-pennyroyal fragrance and is used in a similar way to the species[183].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse and only just cover the seed. The seed usually germinates in 1 - 3 months at 13°c[133]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first year. Plant out in late spring or early summer[K]. Division in spring. Fairly simple, if large divisions are used it is possible to plant them straight out into their permanent positions. Basal cuttings of young shoots in spring[111]. Harvest the young shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm tall and pot them up in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse. They should root within 3 weeks and can be planted out in the summer or following spring.

Cultivars

'Texas American'

This form has an anise-pennyroyal fragrance and is used in a similar way to the species[183].

Links

This plant is also mentioned in the following PFAF articles: Alternative Edible Leaves, The Potted Garden.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[108] International Bee Research Association. Garden Plants Valuable to Bees. International Bee Research Association. 1981
The title says it all.

[111] Sanders. T. W. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge 1926
A fairly wide range of perennial plants that can be grown in Britain and how to grow them.

[133] Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 1. Thompson and Morgan. 1987
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation.

[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture. 0
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[207] Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6
A nice read, lots of information on plant uses.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

[238] Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
A very well presented and informative book on herbs from around the globe. Plenty in it for both the casual reader and the serious student. Just one main quibble is the silly way of having two separate entries for each plant.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

Plants for a Future does not verify the accuracy of reader comments, use at your own risk. In particular Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. You should always consult a professional before using plants medicinally.

Agastache foeniculum

Matti Kaarlas Mon May 22 2006

Is the Agastache foeniculum safe to use if one is pregnant? Any studies on this subject?

Agastache foeniculum

Liesl T Wed Nov 25 2009

Agastache foeniculum is a native to parts of northern Wisconsin. Consequently, it is probably hardy to at least Zone 4.

Agastache foeniculum

Dave Walter Mon Dec 28 2009

I'm curious as to why you describe anise hyssop as: "This species is not hardy in the colder areas of the country, it tolerates temperatures down to between -5 and -10°c[200]". Perhaps this is one of the "silly mistakes" you note for Ref 200: 1. This plant is fully hardy in my Zone 3 garden in Edmonton, Alberta. 2. It is considered a native species in Alberta and "The Flora of Alberta" (2nd Ed, EH Moss) has a map showing its distribution in Zone 1-2 as well. 3. The USDA Plants Database shows this species extending across Canada & into the Northwest Territories - most of this area gets well below -10. 4. The most authoritative text on herbs in Canada (Small, E. Culinary Herbs NRC-CNRC Press)also cites Huxley (1992), but also notes that A. foeniculum has survived temperatures below -25 C. Anise hyssop freely self-seeds and flowers the first year here, so it may be getting by as an annual in the more northern sites. At least two plants have survived in the same spots in my garden since 2006; however, so it is at least also capable of being a short-lived perennial here. Cold tolerance may also vary by variety, but I think you are giving anise hyssop short shrift on its cold tolerance.

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