Agastache ‘Queen Nectarine’ is a patented hybrid hummingbird mint (USPP 29,505) that grows 16 to 22 inches tall, blooms salmon-to-nectarine pink from late June into October, and returns as a short-lived herbaceous perennial in USDA zones 5 through 10. Its flowers deliver 26 to 32 percent sugar concentration, roughly 1.3 times the nectar load of standard Agastache cana. The plant peaks in its second and third seasons, then declines. It offers no culinary value, and wet winter soil kills more plants than cold.

The Parentage Behind a Patented Cultivar

‘Queen Nectarine’ is a controlled cross between Agastache ‘Kudos Coral’ as the seed parent and Agastache ‘Apache Sunset’ as the pollen parent. Terra Nova Nurseries of Canby, Oregon filed the plant patent in 2017 and received it in 2019. Its claim rests on three fixed traits: a naturally compact habit, a color the breeder describes as nectarine-salmon with warm undertones, and a bloom window longer than either parent.

The plant is a tetraploid. Chromosome doubling gives it thicker stems and a denser, half-bushy habit than diploid species. It reliably sets little viable seed, so bloom energy goes into flowering rather than fruit. That is also the mechanism behind its sterility: because it rarely self-sows, it stays put in the border instead of wandering.

Propagation runs by vegetative cuttings and tissue culture only, not seed. Patented propagation without a license is prohibited for 20 years from filing.

In plain terms: mother plants give it the coral color, the pollen parent gives it the sunset tones, and the doubling of its chromosomes gives it the tight shape and long season.

How the Nectarine Color and Nectar Are Built

The visible color comes from two anthocyanin pigments whose ratio changes with temperature. Warm days produce the coral-salmon nectarine tones. Cool nights shift the balance toward a warmer apricot. Flowers open on the raceme from the bottom up, so a single spike shows several tones at once.

Nectar sits in a short corolla tube, roughly 8 to 10 millimeters deep. That depth matters: honeybees, which feed at about 6.7 millimeters, cannot easily reach the base, while hummingbirds and long-tongued bees can. This is the plant's pollination filter, and it explains why the cultivar reads as a hummingbird plant rather than a general-purpose bee plant.

For context, Agastache species nectar values cluster between 18 and 35 percent. ‘Queen Nectarine’ sits near the upper end, fed by high noon sugar production and by the plant's tendency to keep opening fresh flowers rather than ripening seed.

Bloom and Growth Timeline for the Season

Cold treatment and light drive the plant's yearly cycle. The table below maps it from first spring growth to the following spring.

Week of year Growth stage Key detail
10-12 (March) Crown breaks dormancy Soil must be above 45°F and draining
13-18 (April-May) Leaf and stem flush Plants reach full height by week 18
24-26 (mid-June) First buds open Bloom begins 87 to 95 days after planting
26-42 (July-October) Main bloom Peak flowering weeks 28 to 38
42-44 (late October) Frost decline Stems collapse after first hard frost
45-52 (November-February) Crown dormancy Survival depends on drainage, not warmth

Bloom average in that window is about 32 days of dense flowering per season, which is long for a compact Agastache.

Cold Hardiness, Longevity, and the Zone Question

Perennials sold as zone 5 crops do not all behave that way. ‘Queen Nectarine’ survives winter on a woody crown that sits at or just below the soil surface. In a trial over three winters, crown survival in zone 5 ran 60 to 70 percent versus 90 to 95 percent in zone 6. Zone 7 and warmer plants often live three to four years before the center of the crown hollows out.

A common mistake is to treat the plant as short-lived. It is not; it is clump-forming and long-lived if drained, but short-lived if waterlogged. A crown sitting in wet soil over winter rots, and the plant dies back as though killed by cold.

In plain terms: wet feet end the plant before cold ever does.

Three Generations: Queen, Kudos, and Apache Sunset

Buyers often ask whether ‘Queen Nectarine’ is just a recolor of an older plant. It is not. The table below covers the traits that matter at the garden center.

Trait Queen Nectarine Kudos Coral Apache Sunset
Height 16-22 in 20-26 in 26-34 in
Width 18-24 in 20-28 in 24-30 in
Zone range 5-10 5-9 6-9
Bloom start Late June June Early July
Color Nectarine pink Coral-rose Sunset orange
Sterility Near-sterile Partial Seed-set
Hummingbird draw High Moderate High

‘Queen Nectarine’s' smallest mature size makes it the best fit for containers and the front of a border. ‘Apache Sunset’ earns its place only where dramatic color or seed-dropping self-sow is wanted.

Why the Plant Resents Winter Wet More Than Cold

The real limiter is soil oxygen, not air temperature. Clay or poorly drained soil holds water around the crown, and the plant's crown tissue cannot move enough oxygen in cold water. Roots suffocate at the crown faster than they freeze. In a two-site test, a raised bed at a 5-inch elevation increased crown survival from roughly 65 percent to about 92 percent.

Sun is the second limiter. The plant flowers best at six or more hours of direct light. Below five hours, flower count falls sharply even if stems stay green. A plant given less sun often looks healthy and simply fails to bloom, which is one of the most common complaints from gardeners.

Common Mistakes and the Suckering Question

Misinformation clings to this plant. Three corrections matter:

  • Misconception one: that the plant should be cut to the ground in fall. Instead, the woody crown should be left in place until spring, when dead stems are cut back to 2 to 3 inches above the crown.
  • Misconception two: that it needs rich, wet soil. Instead, it needs lean, fast-draining soil with only light feeding; a 5-10-5 starter at planting is sufficient.
  • Misconception three: that the cultivar sets seed and spreads itself. It is near-sterile and does not self-sow dependably.
  • Misconception four: that nectarine refers to edible fruit. The leaves are licorice-scented and not worth eating.

The suckering question is real. ‘Queen Nectarine’ sometimes sends up side shoots from the crown but rarely from distant roots, unlike some Agastache cvs. If a stray shoot emerges, cut it cleanly at the crown rather than pulling, which tears the crown tissue.

What to Actually Do: A Seasonal Calendar

The actions that keep a plant productive depend on timing. Space new plants 18 to 22 inches apart in sun and lean soil. Apply a slow-release, low-nitrogen fertilizer once in spring. Deadhead lightly through summer; stop cutting in late August to let the crown harden. In spring, cut dead stems to 2 to 3 inches above the crown and lift or reset a plant that has sunk or spanned more than about 8 inches.

Watch for red flags in this bulleted list:

  • Crown rot and mushy stems at soil line (usually wet winters)
  • Yellowing leaves and stunted growth (usually lack of sun or excess fertility)
  • No flowers despite healthy foliage (usually fewer than six hours of sun)

Practical Takeaways and What Limits This Article

‘Queen Nectarine’ suits the front of a sun garden in zones 5 through 10. It rewards drainage and lean soil, and it punishes wet clay and shade. Expect peak beauty in year two, decline after year three to four in the coldest zones, and a season of bloom from late June into October.

Two limits are worth stating plainly. The sugar and crown-survival figures above come from replicated trials in the Pacific Northwest and upper Midwest; humid southern gardens may show a shorter bloom window and higher crown loss than the numbers imply. The plant patent runs through 2034, which affects propagation but not cultivation; both matter, and this article separates them wherever a claim rests on trial data rather than established horticulture.