Students for Stewardship The Cork Board
← Back to the library

Hedge Hyssop

Gratiola viscidula (gra-TEE-oh-luh vis-KID-yoo-la)

Family: Plantaginaceae Native Herbaceous

Hedge Hyssop is a native wildflower in the plantain family and is considered Imperiled in North Carolina but can be found along pond and lake margins, and wetlands. It rarely reaches over 1 foot tall and is easy to miss due to its size and habitat in very wet, even partially submerged areas. It has become popular as an aquarium plant and can remain submerged for long periods of time. The glandular puberulence of the stems and flower bracts give the plant a clammy or sticky feel when touched. It is multi-stemmed and compact in growth habit forming a dense mound. The white tubular flowers appear in summer and into fall. This plant can be grown in neutral pH wet sites as bogs and water gardens or along streams and ponds. It prefers partial shade and requires constantly wet soils. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Watch for snails, aphids, thirps, whiteflies and beetles. Potential diseases are root rot in poorly circulated water and fungal diseases in aquariums that are out of balance.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 38 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous Optimal soil pH Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Herbaceous Perennial; Native Plant; Water Plant; Wildflower
Life cycle
Perennial
Light
Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Frequent Standing Water | Occasionally Wet
Growth rate
Slow
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Dense; Spreading
Texture
Coarse
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Leaf shape
Lanceolate; Ovate
Leaf feel
Prickly
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Green leaves are clasping to the stem and lance-shaped.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; White
Flower form
Insignificant
Flower shape
Funnel
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
2 White with yellow center flowers on long stems grows in each leaf axis. They have 5 petals but 2 are often fused.
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Capsule
Stem detail
Densely glandular puberulent green stem have a sticky feel.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Eastern Central & South Eastern U.S.A
Distribution
Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ky., Md., N.C., Ohio, S.C., Tenn., Va., W.Va.
Food & Medicine
Fruit type
Capsule
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Pond; Riparian
Landscape theme
Native Garden; Water Garden
Garden tags
#NC native #aquariums #floodplain #marshes #wet soils tolerant #water garden #boggy sites #herb garden #NC Native Pollinator Plant #wildflower #wetland
Problems & Resistance
Resistant to
Wet Soil

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.