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Prairie Folklore
by Wayne Pauly from Dane County Parks ACTION Adult Conservation Team Newsletter (All folklore stories)
Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
Once, on a tour an older woman remembered that during the Great Depression her
parents stretched the food budget using dried bergamot flowers as a pepper
substitute. We all tried it right there and found it to be a potent pepper with
a three second delay. People chewed a few flowers, uttered a few words about not
tasting anything, interrupted by vigorous spitting as the potent pepper took
effect. It was lots of fun!
Long ago I heard that native bees are divided into two groups, long tongue and
short tongue. Because of the long tube leading to the nectary, only long tongue
bees can pollinate bergamot. But look close at the base of those long lavender
tubes, there’s a hole chewed through apparently by short tongue bees who take
the nectar but don’t help with the pollinating. So next time your in the prairie
watch for the thieving short tongue bees at the underside of the flower while
the law abiding long tongue bees arrive on top.