Also known as hyssop, agastache is a member of the mint family and has similar shaped leaves that have an aniseed scent. These plants are native to China, Japan, the USA and Mexico, where they thrive on poor soil that’s well drained. In British gardens they struggle with cold, wet winters, which means they tend to be short-lived perennials. Yet their flower power is hard to beat, with their nectar-rich blooms being especially popular with bees and butterflies (and hummingbirds in the Americas).
From midsummer through to the first frosts, they pump out tall stems that tend to form fat bottlebrush-like heads made up of small flowers. Some of the more tender species have looser flowerheads consisting of longer tubular blooms. While the most commonly grown varieties made popular in prairie-style plantings by designers such as Piet Oudolf have purple flowers, there’s a good range, including white, yellow, shades of pink and several exotic shades of orange. They tend to grow to 7090cm (27-36in) tall, but plants from the Kudos range developed recently in the USA are more compact and have been bred to be more tolerant of cold, wet soil.
Lovers of good drainage
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To dig or not to dig?
Should we be carrying out a full dig on plots now? Bob considers the pros and cons of the 'autumn dig' debate
The box ball blues
As if his beleaguered box hadn't already taken a beating, Toby now has to deal with some hungry box caterpillars
Save your own seeds
Masterclass on: seed saving
Strange sightings
Three unusual insects turn up in Val's garden in one day
A bolt from the blue!
Cornflowers are perfect for garden and vase
Winter moth prevention
Ruth shows you how to avoid maggoty tree fruits
Create a winter container
There are as many options as in summer
Lightweight gardening tools
AS well as being good for our mental health, gardening is also great exercise.
Autumn price round-up
AG finds better bargains in lesser-known brands
Rudbeckias
Rudbeckias are ideal for sunny summer patios and borders, with some able to survive our coldest winters