Monarda

It is often called Japanese mint. From perennials spread the monarch double( the monarch Didyma), which in many European countries is called "sweet bergamot" for the sweet taste of its leaves, and the monarch is tubular. The height of the plants is 80-90 cm. In the double flower, collected in the head inflorescence about 7 cm in diameter, can have a variety of colors: white, lilac, pink, purple, raspberry, depending on the variety. There is a feature: from the middle of the lower inflorescence one more grows above it, therefore the double is called. The tubular monarchs have the same inflorescence in the form of a purple color.

The plant received its name in honor of the botanist Nicholas Monardes, who in 1571, after returning from a voyage around the world, described the unusual plants he saw in the West Indies( America).There was also a description of the plant, of dried leaves of which the Indians drink medicinal tea. Later, the plant was given the name of a monarch, and in England it was called bergamot.

Monarch leaves are similar to mint leaves, but have a sharper smell. The medicinal properties of monads are the same as those of mint. With tea leaves from Japanese mint, you can gargle with sore throats or apply a gauze bag with a steamed plant surface to the joints, which removes pain in them. Bergamot is used in the canning and tea industries. Especially such tea is common in England. Collect the leaves of bergamot at the time of flowering and dry them in the shade, stored in a closed container for 2 years. In the alcoholic beverage industry, it was used as one of the ingredients in the production of vermouth. In the food industry, leaves of a different kind of monad( tubular), bitter taste, are used instead of bitter black pepper in marinades, salads, canned food, in dry spicy mixtures.

Caution: tea with bergamot, as well as with oregano, is contraindicated in pregnant women to avoid miscarriage!

The monarch grows well in sunny places and in the penumbra, soil fertility is undemanding, prefers weakly acidic, moderately moist soils. In the Northwest, this plant behaves as a juvenile, not perennial, although they write in books that the monarch can grow in one place for 5-6 years without transplantation. Therefore, in 2-3 years, plant or sow the seeds directly in place in the open ground in spring. The distance between the plants is 40 cm. To avoid disturbance of the composition, it is possible to sow seeds next to the mother plant. To sprout sprouts, superfluous otsadit, and parent, aging plant to clean. Blossom monads in July-August about 50 days.

Monads use for mixborders, flower beds, group plantings on the lawn. These colorful plantings look exotic.