Hyssop officinalis

We love growing herb plants and Hyssop is one of those plants essential to your herb gardening.

Hyssop, a member of the Mint family, is a wonderful ornamental herb and shrubby evergreen. A great plant that works well in a border, Hyssop looks lovely when accompanied by other purple perennials like Lavender. Thought to ward off evil and misfortune by Ancient Greeks, it was used to cleanse homes and temples.

Hyssop blooms profusely. This aromatic herb produces fragrant blue flowers on club-like spikes that attract butterflies and bees. Great for use in wreath making, potpourris, or in flower arrangements, Hyssop has a sweet, fruity scent.

The strongly scented leaves of this medicinal herb are bitter, but are still used to brew teas to aide in digestion and more popularly, as a cough expectorant. Combined with Horehound and honey in tea form, Hyssop creates a great natural alternative to store-bought cough syrups.

 A very pungent herb, Hyssop is sometimes used for culinary purposes and can be added to stews and salads for a strong taste or used as a garnish. Hyssop honey is deliciously sweet, so if you keep bees, plant Hyssop near your hives. Hyssop is also used to flavor some alcohols and liqueurs like Absinthe.