bee balm

noun

1. Also called Oswego tea. a wildflower, Monarda didyma, of the mint family, having thin, lance-shaped leaves and white, salmon, or intensely red flowers, growing along streams in temperate forests and widely cultivated in gardens.

2. a plant, Melissa officinalis, having broad, opposite, serrated leaves and tight clusters of white, lemon-scented flowers that attract bees.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bee balm¹

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Example Sentences

Many Native Americans consider bee balm a medicinal plant.

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Perhaps it was the scarlet bee balm that drew hummingbirds in darting, whirring droves.

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Aromatic lilies, lavender and bee balm fill the air with sweet scent in summer, while witch hazel, daphne and other flowering shrubs provide fragrance in quieter seasons.

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Perlut’s team planted bee balm, marigolds, spotted geraniums, lavender, sweet fern and citronella around the edge of the barrels, with cherry tomatoes and basil in the middle.

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Lavender blooms sideways, reaching out for the sun from under a patch of red raspberries that grow rampant along with a smattering of purple-budded weeds, day lilies, black-eyed Susans, bee balm, lamb’s ear, irises.

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