Hyptis emoryi – Desert Lavender

Hyptis emoryi - Desert Lavender

Hyptis emoryi - Desert Lavender

Plant Name

Scientific Name: Hyptis emoryi

Common Name: Desert Lavender

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial, Semi-deciduous

Growth Habit: Shrub

Arizona Native Status: Native

Habitat: Desert

Flower Color: Lavender to violet

Flowering Season: Spring, Summer, Fall

Height: To 15 feet (4.6 m) tall, but usually less

Description: The flowers are clustered in the leaf axils. The individual flowers are small, 2-lipped, and have 5 lobes. The leaves are woolly, grayish green, opposite, and oval in shape. The leaves vary depending on moisture, becoming smaller and grayer in dry conditions.

Special Characteristics

Butterfly Plant – The flowers attract butterflies and bees.

Edible – The leaves are edible and can be used to flavor tea.

Fragrant – The leaves have a strong, pleasant, lavender fragrance when crushed. The flowers have only a faint fragrance of honey.

Classification

Kingdom: Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom: Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision: Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division: Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class: Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass: Asteridae
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae – Mint family
Genus: Hyptis Jacq. – bushmint
Species: Hyptis emoryi Torr. – desert lavender

More About This Plant

Arizona County Distribution Map