Agastache aurantiaca seed | Apricot Sprite Hummingbird Mint
LATIN NAME: Agastache aurantiaca COMMON NAME: Apricot Sprite Hummingbird Mint
Botanical Profile
Apricot Sprite is a compact selection of a hummingbird mint species native to the mountains of the southwestern United States and Mexico, growing as a low, bushy perennial with aromatic grey-green foliage and abundant tubular flowers in a soft apricot-orange shade quite different from the blues and purples typical of many other Agastache species. Its naturally compact habit makes it well suited to smaller garden spaces and containers.
Science & Conservation
Like other members of its genus, Apricot Sprite’s tubular orange flowers are well suited to hummingbird pollination, and breeders have worked specifically with this species and its relatives to develop compact, floriferous cultivars for the ornamental nursery trade that combine strong wildlife value with manageable garden proportions. Its drought tolerance, inherited from its arid mountain origins, has also made it a subject of interest in water-wise xeriscape plant trials across the warmer parts of North America.
Landscape & Practical Uses
Apricot Sprite is grown specifically as a compact, long-flowering hummingbird and pollinator plant for dry, sunny gardens, its unusual apricot-orange colouring adding a distinctive warm tone to plantings that might otherwise lean heavily on the blues and purples typical of related hummingbird mints. Its aromatic foliage and drought tolerance also make it a practical, low-water choice for xeriscape and rock garden plantings.
Growing From Seed
Sow the fine seed onto the surface of a loose, well-drained mix without covering it, since light supports germination, and keep the medium consistently moist until seedlings establish. Full sun and sharp drainage suit this drought-tolerant species particularly well, reflecting its arid mountain origins, and it typically flowers within its first year from an early sowing.
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