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Red Creeping Thyme #742701

Asked April 06, 2021, 8:50 AM EDT

Is Creeping Charlie the same as Red Creeping Thyme?

Hennepin County Minnesota

Expert Response

Not even close. Creeping charlie (Glechoma hederacea L.) is in the Mint family and listed as invasive by the MN DNR because of its propensity to invade natural areas like woodlands. It's an extremely tough plant - grows in sun - shade, drought tolerant, moisture tolerant, evergreen - and it spreads by stolons or surface roots, giving it its mat-like form. 

While bees are often seen on creeping charlie, researchers here at the U of MN found the flowers offered little in the way of nectar rewards for bees. Bees have a behavior called "constancy" where they visit flowers of the same kind, drinking nectar and collecting pollen, until they have exhausted the flowers' resources. In doing this, they move pollen grains from flower to flower. This behavior is one reason, along with their furry bodies, they are such efficient pollinators. Then they move on to another type of flower. Planting masses of bee attractive flowers (vs. just one or two plants) is recommended for this reason.

On the flip side, creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum) is a chosen plant for bee lawns, borders, and herb gardens. It is not invasive, aggressive or noxious. It is planted to form masses especially as a border plant and in rock gardens. There are a number of different cultivars (likely the plant in your picture is a cultivar). Creeping thyme as a pollinator friendly plant is particularly attractive to short-tongued bees. Creeping thyme is somewhat delicate when it comes to surviving out winters, but it can be easily protected with a layer of leaf mulch.

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