woodland wildflower
Purple giant hyssop
Agastache scrophulariifolia
Also known as Purple Giant-hyssop
Native to much of the USA and southern Canada
Vermont and Massachusetts to Georgia, west to western Ontario, eastern South Dakota and eastern Kansas
- Light Full sun to shade Sun tolerance
- Moisture Moist Moisture preference
- Zones 4–7 Cold to heat range
- Bloom Jul–Sep Flowering time
- Height up to 5 ft to 1.5 m
- Life cycle Perennial Annual to perennial
In the garden
A woodland wildflower for sun through shade and evenly moist soil. At up to 5 ft, it needs room in shade gardens and woodland edges. Hardy in USDA zones 4–7.
Growing conditions
Light
Full sun Partial shade Full shade
Moisture
Dry Moist Wet
Hardiness zones
Find your zone:
Pollinators & wildlife
- Bees Common Eastern Bumble Bee
also Western Honey Bee, Eastern Carpenter Bee, Brown-belted Bumble Bee +26 more
Two-spotted Bumble Bee, American Bumble Bee, European Woolcarder Bee, Black-and-gold Bumble Bee, Half-black Bumble Bee, Agapostemon texanus, Lemon Cuckoo Bumble Bee, Brown-winged Striped Sweat Bee, Flat-tailed Leafcutter Bee, Sculptured Resin Bee, Rusty-patched Bumble Bee, Modest Masked Bee, Spurred Ceratina, Orange-tipped Wood-digger, Silver-tailed Petalcutter, Say's Cuckoo Leafcutter Bee, Red-tailed Mining Bee, Anthophora walshii, Spot-sided Dark Bee, Thistle Longhorn-Cuckoo, Illinois Sweat Bee, Lasioglossum platyparius, Eastern Scaly Miner Bee, Goldenrod Long-horned Bee, Macoupin County Miner Bee, Coelioxys alternata - Butterflies Monarch
also Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Common Buckeye, Silver-spotted Skipper +2 more
Gray Hairstreak, Broad-winged Skipper - Beetles Acmaeodera tubulus also Onthophagus pennsylvanicus, Scymnus consobrinus
- Also visited by
- Flower flies:
Virginia Giant Hover Fly, Exoprosopa fasciata +1 more
Epistrophe emarginata - Moths:
Yellow-collared Scape Moth, Hitched Arches +1 more
Acontia candefacta - Hummingbirds: Ruby-throated Hummingbird
- Birds: American Goldfinch
- Flower flies:
Butterflies that use this plant
Documented host and nectar records. Each links to a planting guide for that butterfly.
- Common buckeyenectar
- Eastern tiger swallowtailnectar
- Gray hairstreaknectar
- Monarch butterflynectar
- Silver-spotted skippernectar
Full plant details
Where it grows
- Habitat
- WoodlandThe wild plant community it grows in.
- Native range
- Much of the USA and southern CanadaUnited States (28): CT, DC, DE, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV. Canada (1): ON. Where it grows wild on its own, by state and province.
- Native distribution
- Vermont and Massachusetts to Georgia, west to western Ontario, eastern South Dakota and eastern KansasThe same native range, usually more exact than the state list, and often noting where it has spread beyond it.
Growing conditions
- Light
- Full sun to shadeHow much sun it takes, from full sun to full shade.
- Moisture
- MoistThe soil dampness it prefers, from dry to wet.
- Hardiness zones
- USDA 4–7 · Canadian 4–7The cold-to-heat climate range it survives.
- Soil
- Rich, moist soilsThe soils it grows in naturally.
Growth & form
- Height
- up to 5 ft (to 1.5 m)Typical mature height.
- Life cycle
- PerennialWhether it lives a single season (annual), two (biennial), or returns for years (perennial).
Flowers, foliage & fruit
- Type
- WildflowerWhat kind of plant it is.
- Bloom
- Jul–SepWhen it flowers.
- Flower color
- Red, PurpleThe bloom color, or colors.
- Fruit/Seeds
- NutletsThe seed or fruit it sets after flowering.
- Toxicity
- None knownWhether any part is poisonous to people or pets.