Monkey Flower Savory, Clinopodium mimuloides

About Monkey Flower Savory (Clinopodium mimuloides) 10 Nurseries Carry This Plant

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Monkey Flower Savory is a rare native perennial herb in the Lamiaceae (Mint) family that grows in the Coast Ranges from Monterey southward to the Transverse Range. The majority of its population lies within the Los Padres National Forest. It is uncommon throughout its range and for this reason it is included on CNPS list 4.2. It tends to grow in moist places, at elevations from 400 to over 5,000 feet. Like others in this genus, it is low-growing and delicate in appearance, but older specimens in the wild can attain nearly 2 meters. It is herbaceous with slender stems but occasionally woody at the base. The flowers are small, hairy, with a rounded-toothed margin. The tubular flowers are red-orange and grow to 1-2 inches. Hummingbirds love them! Overall, it resembles an Epilobium but requires more moisture. It spreads by rhizomes wherever there is adequate moisture.

Plant Description

Plant Type

Perennial herb

Size

1 - 6 ft tall
1 - 6 ft wide

Form

Mounding

Growth Rate

Moderate

Dormancy

Winter Deciduous

Fragrance

Fragrant - Pleasant

Flower Color

Orange, Red

Flowering Season

Summer, Fall

Wildlife Supported

Hummingbirds
Hummingbird gardens

Butterflies & moths hosted ( 1 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Florida Pink Scavanger Caterpillar Pyroderces badiaPyroderces badia

Landscaping Information

Sun

Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture

Low, Moderate - High,

Summer Irrigation

Max 1x / week once established

Nurseries

Carried by 10

Ease of Care

Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance

Tolerates cold to 25° F

Soil Drainage

Medium, Slow

Soil Description

Tolerates a variety of soils. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Common uses

Hummingbird Gardens, Deer Resistant

Companion Plants

Use in the understory of central coast trees such as Madrone (Arbutus menziesii), Pines (Pinus sp.), and Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), with other perennial herbs, annuals, or geophytes including Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), wild onion (Alium sp.), Columbine (Aquilegia formosa), Mariposa Lily (Calochortus sp.), Clarkia sp., Chinese Houses (Collinsia sp.), Larkspur (Delphinium sp.), Sticky Cinquefoil (Drymocallis glandulosa), Wild Strawberry (Fragraria vesca), Gilia sp., Alum Root (Heuchera micrantha), Iris sp., Tiger Lily (Lilium pardalinum), Lupine (Lupinus sp.), Mint (Monardella sp.), Phacelia sp., Common Buttercup (Ranunculus californicus), Sonoma Sage (Salvia sonomensis), and Western Vervain (Verbena lasiostachys)

Maintenance

Can be cut back in fall when it starts to go dormant

Propagation?

For propagating by seed: No treatment.

Sunset Zones?

5*, 6, 7*, 8*, 9*, 10, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting

Site Type

Moist places in hilly or mountainous terrain, along streambanks or in canyons as part of chaparral or woodland

Climate

Annual Precipitation: 11.1" - 49.3", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 2.00", Coldest Month: 40.8" - 51.6", Hottest Month: 59.8" - 78.5", Humidity: 0.89" - 25.98", Elevation: 178" - 6541"

Alternative Names

Botanical Names: Satureja mimuloides
Common Names: Monkey-flower Savory, Monkeyflower Savory

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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links: Jepson eFlora Taxon Page CalPhotos Wikipedia Calflora

Monkey Flower Savory

Clinopodium mimuloides

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Monkey Flower SavoryClinopodium mimuloides

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Monkey Flower Savory

Clinopodium mimuloides