Hyptis alata (Musky Mint)

Hyptis alata

Hyptis alata (Raf.) Shinners

Hyptis alata (Raf.) Shinners var. stenophylla Shinners

Hyptis radiata Willd.

Musky Mint, Clustered Bushmint

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Lamiaceae	Mint family
Genus	Hyptis	From the Greek huptios for “turned back,” from the lower lip position of the flower
Species	alata	With appendaged wings or flanges, usually on the stems or leaf petioles

About plant names...

Musky mint, named for its musky odor, is native throughout the southeastern United States, along with Cuba, Argentina, southern Brazil, and Paraguay. It favors wetlands, prairies, pond and lake margins, and flatwoods.

Plants: Short-lived perennial 24-36" (60-91 cm) tall, with square stems.

Leaves: Opposite, lanceolate, with serrated edges, 1½-4" (3.8-10 cm) long.

Flowers: Flowers emerge from leaf axils, on short stalks. They are rounded, with an asymmetric calyx. The corolla has one lip, pink to lavendar, and four stamens that extend beyond the corolla. There are five white, hairy sepals beneath the flower dome. Flowers appear from May to November.

Fruits: An ovary, with two more more seed chambers.

Online References:

Hyptis alata on wildflowers.jdcc.edu

Hyptis alata at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Hyptis alata on regionalconservation.org

Hyptis alata on Wikipedia

Hyptis alata on the Encyclopedia of Life

References:

Hammer, Roger L., Everglades Wildflowers: A Field Guide to Wildflowers of the Historic Everglades, including Big Cypress, Corkscrew, and Fakahatchee Swamps, Falcon Guides, Rowan and Littlefield, 2014, p. 194

Hyptis alata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/12/2015 · Shark Valley, Everglades National Park, FL
≈ 7 × 8" (18 × 20 cm)

4/12/2015 · Shark Valley, Everglades National Park, FL
≈ 7 × 10" (16 × 25 cm)

Range:

About this map...