Is Anise Hyssop Deer Resistant?

Deer may love your other garden plants, but they tend to avoid anise hyssop.

Whether they're eating flowers and foliage or rubbing the bark off trees with their antlers, deer can devastate a garden with just a few visits. Deter deer by planting species they don't particularly like to eat, such as anise hyssop.

Deer Deterring Qualities

Deer often avoid eating plants with "strong scents and pungent

tastes, such as herbs," according to North Carolina Cooperative Extension. Anise hyssop, or Agastache foeniculum, is a herbaceous perennial that tends to be deer-resistant. Tufts University recommends planting a back border of anise hyssop to keep deer away from the garden.

Features

Anise hyssop produces long spikes of small, purplish-blue blooms July through September. Plants can grow up to 36 inches tall. Anise hyssop is also called giant hyssop, licorice mint, wonder honey plant and elk mint.

Cultivation

Anise hyssop prefers full sun and moist, well-drained soil. Sow anise hyssop seeds in the fall and let them lie dormant through the winter. The seeds germinate in spring, or you can divide and plant established plants.

References

• Cornell University: Dr. Bridgen's List of Plants Deer Do Not Like to Eat
• Tufts University: Sustainable Farming Project: Speciality Crops: Anise Hyssop
• North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension: Deer Resistant Plants
• North Carolina State University Cooperative Extension: Agastache Foeniculum

Resources

• Rutgers: New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station: Landscape Plants Rated by Deer Resistance