Sugar Buzz® Pink Frosting Bee Balm - 72-Cell Plug Tray

Sugar Buzz® Pink Frosting blankets itself in pastel pink bee balm flowers in midsummer, so thickly that the foliage all but disappears. The blooms run 2 to 2.5 inches across on strong, branching stems.

It is one of the shorter members of its group at about 14 to 16 inches, good for the front to middle of a border or a container. It resists powdery mildew better than average, the leaves smell of mint, and pollinators visit all through bloom.

What it looks like

Rounded, shaggy flower heads 2 to 2.5 inches across are made of tubular florets in soft pastel pink, radiating from a crown on pale pink bracts. The heads are packed so closely that they form a nearly continuous layer of pink over the plant. Leaves are opposite, oval to lance-shaped, dark green and toothed on square stems. The plant forms an upright clump about 14 to 16 inches tall and 18 to 24 inches wide. At peak bloom the dark green leaves are mostly hidden beneath a carpet of pale pink heads.

Growing it with lavender

Bee balm prefers richer, more evenly moist soil than lavender, so set it in a neighboring bed with better soil and regular water, where its pastel pink heads carry on the summer color and bee traffic near your lavender.

Care

Grow in full sun to part shade in average to fertile soil with regular water, especially during summer dry spells. Hardy in zones 4-8. Give it room for air to move around the stems to help keep leaves clean, deadhead faded heads for a longer show, and divide the clump every few years in spring.

At a glance

• Botanical name: Monarda
• Flower color: Pastel pink
• Foliage: Dark green
• Growth habit: Upright clump
• Mature size: 14–16 in tall × 18–24 in wide
• USDA hardiness zones: 4–8
• Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
• Bloom start: Early-July
• Peak bloom: Mid-July
• Bloom pattern: Long Blooming
• Deer resistance: Resistant
• Pollinator value: Excellent

Sizes and shipping

One full 72-cell plug tray: 72 young starter plugs of this variety (cells about 1⅓ in. wide × 2½ in. deep), rooted and ready to pot up into quarts or gallons. Best for growers and nurseries. Potted plants and plug trays ship during our live-plant seasons, March 1–May 31 and October 1–November 30; June through September is local pickup only. Plugs, potted plants and trays do not ship to AZ, CA, HI, ID, NV, OR, UT or WA.