''Pycnanthemum'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of herbaceous plants in the

mint family The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savor ...

(Lamiaceae). Species in this genus are often referred to as "mountain mints" and they often have a minty or thyme-like aroma when crushed. All species of ''Pycnanthemum'' are native to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. The center of diversity for the genus is North Carolina with 13 of the 20 species having been collected therein. Nineteen of the 20 species of ''Pycnanthemum'' occur in the Eastern US and Canada, and one disjunct species ('' P. californicum'') occurs in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

and

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

. ''Pycnanthemum'' belongs to the true mint subtribe (Menthinae), and it has been shown to be closely related to the ''

Monarda ''Monarda'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae.Harley, R. M., et al. 2004. "Labiatae". pp 167-275 In: Kubitzki, K. (editor) and J. W. Kadereit (volume editor). ''The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants'' volume VII. ...

'', ''

Blephilia ''Blephilia'', the pagoda plant or wood mint, is a genus of three species of flowering plants in the family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to eastern North America. ''Blephilia'' are most often found in open areas, glades, an ...

'', and the scrub mints of the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern po ...

. Relationships within the genus remain unresolved. A complicated history of

polyploidization Speciation is the evolutionary process by which populations evolve to become distinct species. The biologist Orator F. Cook coined the term in 1906 for cladogenesis, the splitting of lineages, as opposed to anagenesis, phyletic evolution within ...

paired with cryptic morphologies makes this a challenging group for systematists.

Species

* '' Pycnanthemum albescens'' – white-leaved mountainmint – south-central US * '' Pycnanthemum beadlei'' – North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, eastern Tennessee, northern Georgia * '' Pycnanthemum californicum'' Torr. ex Durand – Sierra mint – California * '' Pycnanthemum clinopodioides'' Torr. & A.Gray – mid-Atlantic States, Tennessee, Indiana * ''

Pycnanthemum curvipes ''Pycnanthemum curvipes'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name stone mountainmint. It is native to the Southeastern United States, where it is found in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Its p ...

'' – southeastern US * ''

Pycnanthemum flexuosum ''Pycnanthemum'' is a genus of herbaceous plants in the mint family (Lamiaceae). Species in this genus are often referred to as "mountain mints" and they often have a minty or thyme-like aroma when crushed. All species of ''Pycnanthemum'' are ...

'' – southeastern US * '' Pycnanthemum floridanum'' – Florida mountainmint – Florida, southern Georgia * ''

Pycnanthemum incanum ''Pycnanthemum incanum'', with the common name hoary mountainmint, "mountain mint", wild basil or hoary basil, is a herbaceous perennial in the mint family. Distribution The plant is widespread across Eastern United States and into Ontario, Cana ...

'' – hoary mountainmint, hoary basil, wild basil – Ontario, most of US east of the Mississippi River * '' Pycnanthemum loomisii'' – Loomis' mountainmint – southeastern US, Ohio Valley * †'' Pycnanthemum monotrichum'' Fernald – Virginia but extinct * '' Pycnanthemum montanum'' – southern Appalachians * '' Pycnanthemum muticum'' – short-toothed mountainmint – much of eastern US from east Texas to southern Maine * '' Pycnanthemum nudum'' Nutt. – Coastal Plain mountainmint – southeastern US * '' Pycnanthemum pilosum'' ( = ''P. verticillatum'' var. ''pilosum'') – hairy mountainmint, whorled mountainmint * '' Pycnanthemum pycnanthemoides'' – southern mountainmint – southeastern US, Ohio Valley * '' Pycnanthemum setosum'' – awned mountainmint – southeastern + mid-Atlantic US * '' Pycnanthemum tenuifolium'' – little-leaved mountainmint, slender-leaved mountainmint (= ''P. flexuosum'' ) – Quebec, Ontario, eastern + central US * '' Pycnanthemum torreyi'' – Torrey's mountainmint – eastern + east-central US * '' Pycnanthemum verticillatum'' – whorled mountainmint – Quebec, Ontario, eastern + central US * '' Pycnanthemum virginianum'' – Virginia mountainmint – Quebec, Ontario, eastern + central US Pycnanthemum curvipes (14698304290).jpg, ''

'' Pycnanthemum flexuosum 1zz.jpg, ''

'' Pycnanthemum incanum UGA1120218.jpg, ''

'' Pycnanthemum muticum (14945847337).jpg, '' Pycnanthemum muticum'' Pycnanthemum tenuifolium kz1.jpg, '' Pycnanthemum tenuifolium'' in bud Pycnanthemum-virginianum.JPG, '' Pycnanthemum virginianum''

Footnotes

References

* (2007):

Germplasm Resources Information Network Germplasm Resources Information Network or GRIN is an online USDA National Genetic Resources Program software project to comprehensively manage the computer database for the holdings of all plant germplasm collected by the National Plant Germp ...

&ndash
''Pycnanthemum''
Version of 2007-OCT-05. Retrieved 2011-FEB-18.

External links

Barbara Pleasant. The Herb Companion: Herb-To-Know: Mountain Mint.
* ttp://www.henriettes-herb.com/eclectic/kings/pycnanthemum.html Henriette's Herbal Homepage: ''Pycnanthemum''. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2707696 Lamiaceae genera Flora of North America