| Author | (Leavenworth) Fernald | |
| Distribution | Occurs throughout the Mountains, essentially throughout the Piedmont, and sparingly into the western and central Coastal Plain. A 2017 specimen collected in Brunswick County is labelled as P. pycnanthemoides, but is in SERNEC as P. loomisii. Though this species was unfortunately subsumed within P. incanum in RAB (1968), Gleason (1952) listed it as a good species, as do most references. Weakley (2018) and Gleason (1952) give two varieties of it in the state, distinctions of which are beyond the scope of this website. However, it appears that the majority of the county records for P. incanum in RAB (1968) relate to this species.
This is a Mid-Atlantic species, ranging from MD and southern IL, south to western FL and AL.
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| Abundance | Common in the Mountains; fairly common to frequent in the Piedmont; rare in the Coastal Plain, found east to Martin, Craven, and Jones counties. | |
| Habitat | This species has a wide range of habitats, none specialized. It occurs along wooded borders, old fields, open woods, and meadows, though it is more often found in partial shade. | |
| Phenology | Blooms in July and August, and fruits soon after flowering. | |
| Identification | This species is a typical mountain-mint, being about 3 feet tall, freely branched in the upper portions of the stem, and with numerous pairs of opposite leaves. The leaves tend to be ovate, nearly sessile, toothed along the margin, and about 2-3 inches long and half as wide. These species have rather flat-topped heads of about 1-2 inches wide at the ends of each branch, subtended by whitened bracts, with the flowers being very small and often pink (as opposed to white in many other species). There are many such heads in bloom over the plant, often dozens of them. Separation of this species from others is technical and involves closely examining the calyx or the seeds. Use Weakley (2018) or Wofford (1989) to key out the species, as well as the two varieties (to add to your confusion). Somewhat helpful is Gleason's (1952) comment: "Closely resembling P. incanum in habit, foliage, and pubescence, although with a general tendency toward more numerous spreading hairs on the bracts and calyx lobes." He also mentions the difference in flower color, with this species having pink to purple corollas, versus white spotted with purple in P. incanum. As mentioned in Distribution and Abundance, this should be a frequently encountered mountain-mint in the mountains and Piedmont. | |
| Taxonomic Comments | Weakley (2018), Gleason (1952), and some other references list two varieties in NC -- the nominate var. pycnanthemoides (which Weakley shows as common in the mountains and uncommon in the Piedmont) and var. viridifolium (which Weakley shows as uncommon in the mountains and Piedmont, and rare in the Coastal Plain). Populating the county range maps for these varieties on this website is unlikely to be done in the foreseeable future, as few specimens have this level of distinction.
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| Other Common Name(s) | None | |
| State Rank | S4? | |
| Global Rank | G5 | |
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| US Status | | |
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| USACE-emp | | |
