Giant Yellow Hyssop
Agastache nepetoides, also known as Yellow Hyssop or Giant Yellow Hyssop, is a perennial flower native to southern Michigan and the UP. It reaches 4 to 6 feet tall, with lush foliage. The yellow flowers are described as showy, but only a few on each flowerhead bloom at a time. I attribute the designation of showy to the height and texture this plant can bring to a garden. The flower spikes are distinctive and while not tremendously colorful, can reach 16" long with a fluffy appearance, adding a lot of visual interest. Bees love them. The bloom time is mid-summer and can last more than a month.
Giant Yellow Hyssop prefers light shade to part sun, and moist to medium, fertile, loamy soil. It is evolved to inhabit open woodlands, forest openings, and forest edges.
Providing both pollen and nectar, Giant Yellow Hyssop is popular with both butterflies and a variety of bees. Its sheer size provides a lot of insect habitat, seedheads are useful to birds, and it is deer resistant. Looks nice in a grouping. Spreads by rhizome into a clump and works well in a butterfly, pollinator, or natural garden.