SPOTTED BEEBALM 



NLonarda punctata Linnaeus 



Spotted beebalm is one of the most beautiful members of the Mint 

 Family. The delicate combination of color in its flowers is quite un- 

 like the colors exhibited by most of its relatives. The plant has a 

 strong flavor and scent, somewhat resembling that of mint but closer 

 to that of thyme. It contains, in fact, so much of the valuable drug 

 thymol that attempts have been made to grow it as a source of this 

 substance. It grows mostly in dry, sterile, and often acid, soils, being 

 found in the Southern States in pine woods, though in the West 

 it is frequent on prairies. It is sometimes called horsemint. 



Spotted beebalm is distributed from Florida to Texas and Kansas 

 and northward to southern New York and Minnesota. 



The specimen sketched was obtained near Washington, District 

 of Columbia, where it blooms throughout late summer. 



PLATE Z33 



