Yellow giant hyssop is a tall herbacous perennial in the Mint family; its stems have the characteristic four-angled shape, but the dense foliage doesn't have the same minty fragrance. However, the bitter leaves are just as unappealing to browsing deer. This hyssop's pale-yellow flowers bloom a few at a time on fluffy, green spikes up to 16" long. Many species of bees and other pollinators swarm the blooms throughout fall. Birds eat the seeds and perch on or nest in the plant. Yellow giant hyssop prefers part sun and medium-wet to medium-dry soils. It tolerates full sun with adequate moisture but not full shade. It spreads slowly by rhizomes to form lasting colonies.
 
Giant yellow hyssop is often found along woodland edges in the wild, so it is ideal massed or used with other plant species along woodland edges. Use in butterfly, pollinator, and native gardens. 
 
Plant Characteristics:
Average height is 5-6', but it can be 4-7' tall.
 
Prefers light shade/part sun. Tolerates full sun with adequate moisture, but not full shade.
 
Site in dry to moist soils.
 
Flowers are pale-yellow to light purplish and bloom August-October. Each flower is replaced by 4 nutlets.
 
Medium-green leaves are lanceolate-ovate shaped with coarsely serrated margins.
 
Wildlife Value:
Host plant for larvae of splendid brass looper, Anstenoptilia marmarodactyla, and Radcliffe's dagger moth. This plant's copious foliage attracts predatory insects that feed upon pest insects.