'Montrose White' Calamint - Unbelievably Great Perennial Plant

  

Remember this name:  Calamintha nepeta 'Montrose White'

This plant, I predict, will soon be a 'Perennial Plant of the Year'. Why? because it is a great, hardy (to USDA zone 4)  and delightful flowering perennial plant...and it is deer resistant.  YAY!

Calamintha nepeta spp nepeta 'Montrose White' was named by Mike Yanny of Johnson’s Nursery in Menomonee Falls, Wis.  Yanny’s wife purchased the calamint from Nancy Goodwin at Montrose Nursery. Yanny saw that the plant thrived and bloomed under benign neglect and came back every year as strong as ever. He asked Goodwin if he could name and patent this particular calamint ‘Montrose White.’ She agreed.

‘Montrose White’ is a compact, clump-forming, 9 -16” high plant that is covered with tiny white flowers from June until frost.  When temperatures fall in autumn the flowers turn lightly lavender. It does not get floppy and has very fragrant leaves.

Calamintha is an herb that's native to Europe and is known there as 'lesser calamint'. It is used in cooking in Italy under the name nepitella. It has a strong flavor and is said to combine well with wild mushrooms, artichokes and pork. (this info from Marie Viljoen).

'Montrose White' calamint loves full sun and well-drained soil. It will not tolerate wet soils so let it dry out between waterings.  It has no special fertilizer or pH requirements.

The best thing about this flowering plant, besides the fact that it roots from cuttings in a few weeks, is that it is sterile! This means that no seed heads are formed and no seeds are produced thus it always looks great! Important: it does not self sow as the straight calamint species does.

'Montrose White’ is ideal for shrub borders, containers and as an edging plant. They bloom all summer and if you plant it near a path and brush against the foliage, you will smell an instant scent of strong peppermint. Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds are crazy for it. In bloom, Montrose white looks like a  summer snow flurry.

This short plant is a drought tolerant species that looks fabulous planted beneath taller summer flowers such as  Echinaceas, Phlox, Perovskia and shrub roses.    It also looks fantastic in front of grasses and with any blue colored plant.

All in all, a deer proof plant that rewards us with flowers, scent and a long blooming season... award winner, for sure.