Agastache rugosa


Agastache rugosa, the Korean mint, also known as wrinkled giant hyssop, purple giant hyssop, Indian mint, blue licorice, huo xiang, and Chinese patchouli, is an aromatic herb in the mint family, native to East Asia.

Description

Korean mint is a perennial plant growing up to tall, with square stalks that branch at the upper part. The oval-cordate leaves are oppositely arranged, long and broad, with coarsely serrated margins. Some leaves have hair and/or touches of white on the underside.
From July to September in the Northern Hemisphere, purple bilabiate flowers bloom in verticillasters that are long and broad. The calyx is long, with five narrow triangular lobes. The petals are long, lower ones longer and the ones inside serrated. The stamens are didynamous, long, and exposed. The fruit is schizocarp, with obovate elliptical mericaps of.

Cultivation

Korean mint grows well in fertile, moisture-retentive soils and good sunlight. The aroma becomes weaker in shady conditions.
Korean mint can be propagated by both sexual and asexual means. The seeds gathered in autumn can be sown in the spring. One can also dig out the plant in autumn or early spring, divide the roots, and plant them at intervals of.

Cultivars

There is one known cultivar, Agastache rugosa 'Golden Jubilee', which has yellow-green foliage.

Uses

Culinary

Korea

The plant's Korean name is baechohyang, but it is more commonly known as banga in southern parts of Korea, where the herb is extensively cultivated and consumed. In southern Korean cuisine, the herb is a popular last minute addition to various dishes, such as chueo-tang, and maeun-tang. It is also sometimes used as the main ingredient in buchimgae.

Medicinal

China

It is called huò xiāng in Chinese and it is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is used interchangeably with guang huo xiang. It was traditionally used to relieve nausea, vomiting and poor appetite. It contains methyl chavicol, anethole, anisaldehyde, limonene, pinene and linalool.

Chemical constituents

Chemical compounds found in the plant include: