Mandarin Lemon Balm | Melissa officinalis 'Mandarina'

🌿 Ships well rooted in a 3.5 x 5 inch deep pot. Everything you love about lemon balm, with a twist. Where standard lemon balm smells like fresh citrus, Mandarina smells like a just-peeled mandarin orange, warm and sweet and unmistakably different. Brush past it, brush against it, or simply step nearby on a warm afternoon and the fragrance stops you cold. The genus name Melissa comes from the Greek word for honeybee, and it earns it: bees work the small white flowers heavily through summer, and the foliage itself is a mosquito repellent worth having along a patio edge or walkway just for that reason. The leaves are the prize: fresh in tea, in salads, in fish and chicken dishes as a citrus substitute, dried for potpourri and herb pillows, or steeped as a simple, flavorful everyday herbal tea that needs no explanation beyond how good it smells. It's a vigorous, fast-growing mint family member that spreads by seed and rhizome, so cut it back hard a few times through the season to keep it tidy and prevent aggressive self-seeding. Containers are a great option if you want to enjoy the fragrance without managing the spread. 🌿 Latin Name: Melissa officinalis 'Mandarina' 🌞 Light: Full sun to part shade; afternoon shade appreciated in Zone 8 heat 🌱 Soil: Well-drained, moderately fertile; adaptable to a wide pH range; average to rich preferred 💧 Water: Moderate; fairly drought-tolerant once established; keep consistently moist for best foliage production 📏 Mature Size: 2 to 3 ft tall; spreading clump by seed and rhizome 🌸 Bloom Time: Late spring to midsummer; pinch flowers to extend leaf production 🗺️ Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9 🦋 Wildlife Value: Excellent bee plant; attracts bumblebees and native bees; natural mosquito deterrent 🌿 Edible/Culinary: Leaves used fresh or dried for tea, cooking, herb vinegars, salads, potpourri, and sachets; mandarin orange fragrance and flavor; excellent citrus substitute in cooking ⚠️ Spreading note: Prolific self-seeder; cut back before flowering to manage spread, or grow in containers