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Scarlet Beebalm

Monarda didyma

Scarlet tubular flowers crown square stems with aromatic foliage. Found in seepage slopes, periglacial boulderfields with abundant seepage, streambanks, boggy places, usually in strong to moderately filtered sunlight. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

70
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
2–4 feet
Spread
2–3 feet
Light
Full sun
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 2.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 16 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Herbaceous perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
July to September
Fruiting season
September to October

Recorded in 32 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 2

Seeps and springs

Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep
Groundwater seep. Shown: Gum Swamp Trail, Weymouth Woods, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Weymouth Woods Gum Swamp Trail seep, ncwetlands.org, undated. CC BY 2.0. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 106 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

12CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Monarda

  • Anterastria teratophoraGrey Marvel, White Spotted Jaspidia
  • Eosphoropteryx thyatyroidesPink-Patched Looper Moth
  • Lintneria eremitusHermit Sphinx
  • Orthodes majusculaRustic Quaker, Rustic Groundcat
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Pyrausta orphisalisOrange Mint Moth, Orange Spotted Pyrausta
  • Pyrausta signatalisRaspberry Pyrausta
  • Sparganothis sulfureanaSparganothis Fruitworm Moth, Sulfur Leafroller, False Yellow-Head
  • Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
  • Chionodes fondella
Show all 12
  • Pyrausta generosa
  • Xenotemna pallorana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
37BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Monarda

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
4Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Monarda

  • Dufourea monardae
  • Perdita gerhardi
  • Perdita variegata
  • Protandrena abdominalis
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Lamiaceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Red
Fruit begins
September
Fruit ends
October

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Allow room for spreading stems. Avoid overhead watering to reduce mildew; retain some hollow stems for bees. NC State Extension

Growing sources and scope

Recognizing it

Opposite toothed leaves, square stems, and dense heads of narrow two-lipped flowers. Identification source

Also known as

Oswego Tea; Scarlet Bee Balm

Conservation status

Virginia rankSNR
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources