Hyssop vs Anise Hyssop: Two Different Plants, One Shared Name

Hyssop and anise hyssop share half a name and almost nothing else. One is a bitter Mediterranean herb used medicinally since biblical times; the other is a sweet, licorice-scented North American plant that pollinators adore and cooks reach for. We grow both at La Ferme À Ciel Sur Mer in Charlevoix, Québec, and the mix-up comes up constantly. So here is the plain comparison, plant by plant.

The Short Answer

Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) and anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) are two different plants that happen to sit in the same botanical family. True hyssop is a bitter, camphor-minty Mediterranean herb used mainly for respiratory and digestive support. Anise hyssop is a sweet, licorice-mint North American native used mostly in tea blends, baking, and pollinator gardens. They share the common name "hyssop" and the mint family (Lamiaceae), but they belong to different genera and are not interchangeable.

Hyssop vs Anise Hyssop at a Glance

Same Family, Different Plants

Both plants belong to Lamiaceae, the mint family, which is why they share the square stems, aromatic leaves, and flower spikes you would expect from a mint relative. But they sit in different genera. True hyssop is the only widely grown species of Hyssopus, a small woody perennial native to the eastern Mediterranean. Anise hyssop is an Agastache — a genus of tall North American prairie plants that also includes Korean mint (Agastache rugosa) and the giant hyssops (such as purple giant hyssop, Agastache scrophulariifolia). So when you see "agastache" on a plant tag, you are looking at an anise hyssop relative, not true hyssop.

The shared name is an accident of resemblance. Anise hyssop most likely picked up the "hyssop" half of its name from a passing likeness to true hyssop — the same upright, aromatic, mint-family habit — while the "anise" half comes from its scent. The two plants are not close relatives. True hyssop's own name runs much deeper: it traces back through the Greek hyssopos to the Hebrew ezov of the Hebrew Bible's purification rites, though which plant the biblical ezov actually was is a matter of long debate. We untangle that story in our guide to hyssop in the Bible.

One more source of confusion worth clearing up: neither plant is anise. Anise (Pimpinella anisum) is a seed spice in the carrot family, Apiaceae, and star anise (Illicium verum) is a different plant again. Anise hyssop only tastes like anise; it is not botanically related to it.

How They Taste

This is where the two plants separate most clearly. True hyssop is bold and bitter, with a camphor-mint edge and only a faint anise note at the back of the palate. In the cup it sits closer to sage or rosemary than to a soft tea, and most people blend it with milder herbs or a little honey to round it off.

Anise hyssop is the opposite: sweetly aromatic, with a clean licorice-mint flavour and no bitterness. The scent is the giveaway — crush a leaf and you get a warm, tarragon-and-mint sweetness that makes it a natural in tea blends and desserts. If you find true hyssop too sharp, anise hyssop is the friendlier cup by a wide margin.

How They're Used

True hyssop is a medicinal and craft herb. Its traditional uses cluster around respiratory support (it has a long history as an expectorant for coughs and congestion) and digestion, and it has a second life as a distiller's botanical in absinthe and herbal liqueurs. For the full picture, see our guides to hyssop tea benefits and how to use hyssop.

Anise hyssop is a culinary and garden herb. The leaves and flowers go into tea blends, baked goods, syrups, cocktails, and salads, and the flowering spikes are one of the best pollinator draws we grow — bees work them from morning to dusk. Our guides to anise hyssop uses and cooking with anise hyssop go into the recipes and preparations.

Growing Them

Both are perennials that come back for us in Charlevoix, but they grow differently. True hyssop is a compact, woody sub-shrub, usually around 60 cm (one to two feet) tall, with narrow lance-shaped leaves and dense blue-violet flower spikes; it holds the cold well for a Mediterranean plant. Anise hyssop is taller and softer, reaching 90 to 120 cm (three to four feet), with broader, ovate leaves that release their licorice scent at the brush of a hand.

That scent is the quickest way to tell the two apart in the garden: crush a leaf, and anise hyssop is sweet and licorice-like while true hyssop is sharp and camphor-minty. Anise hyssop is a short-lived perennial, so we re-seed it each year for a full stand. If you want to grow either one, we have full guides to growing hyssop and growing anise hyssop.

A Note on Safety

Both plants are safe in ordinary culinary and tea amounts for healthy adults, but each carries one specific caution, and they are different cautions.

Hyssop. Dried-leaf hyssop tea at typical preparations is generally well tolerated. Hyssop essential oil is a different matter — it contains concentrated pinocamphone and isopinocamphone, both neurotoxic at high doses, with case reports of seizures from ingesting the oil. Avoid hyssop entirely, tea included, during pregnancy and breastfeeding, in anyone with a seizure disorder, and in young children, and never ingest hyssop essential oil.

Anise hyssop. The leaf and flower are a food-safe culinary herb, and the sweet flavour makes it an easy everyday tea. Its essential oil, however, is high in estragole (methyl chavicol), which the European Medicines Agency and EFSA flag as genotoxic and carcinogenic in concentrated form. Whole-leaf tea exposure is far lower than the isolated oil, but during pregnancy, breastfeeding, or for young children it is sensible to favour lower-estragole alternatives such as chamomile, lemon balm, or peppermint, and to never ingest the concentrated oil.

Which Should You Choose?

It comes down to what you want the herb to do. If you are after a bracing, medicinal cup for a cough or a heavy meal, or a botanical for distilling, reach for true Organic Hyssop. If you want a sweet, aromatic tea, a baking and cocktail herb, or a pollinator magnet for the garden, Organic Anise Hyssop is the one. They are not substitutes for each other, so it is worth matching the plant to the job — and if you cook and garden as much as you brew tea, there is a good case for keeping both on the shelf.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is anise hyssop the same as hyssop?

No. Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) and anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) are different plants in different genera. They share the mint family and a common name, but true hyssop is a bitter Mediterranean medicinal herb and anise hyssop is a sweet North American culinary and pollinator plant.

Can I substitute one for the other?

Not really. Their flavours are opposite — true hyssop is bitter and camphor-minty, anise hyssop is sweet and licorice-like — and their uses differ, so swapping one for the other will change both the taste and the purpose of what you are making.

Which one is better for tea?

For a gentle, sweet, everyday cup, anise hyssop is the easier tea. True hyssop is bolder and more medicinal, better suited to respiratory or digestive support and usually blended with milder herbs. Neither is "better" — they answer different needs.

Are both safe to drink as tea?

For healthy adults, both are generally well tolerated as leaf-and-flower tea. Avoid true hyssop during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and with a seizure disorder because of its pinocamphone content, and favour lower-estragole alternatives to anise hyssop in those same situations. Never ingest the essential oil of either plant.

Do they look alike in the garden?

Both carry upright flower spikes in the blue-violet range, which is part of the confusion, but true hyssop is a shorter, woodier plant with narrow leaves, while anise hyssop is taller and leafier with a distinct licorice scent when you brush against it.

Is anise hyssop related to anise or star anise?

No. Anise hyssop only smells like anise; it is an Agastache in the mint family. Anise (Pimpinella anisum) is in the carrot family, and star anise (Illicium verum) is a different plant again.

Want to go deeper on either plant? Our related guides:

• Hyssop Tea Benefits: Soothing Support for Respiratory, Digestive, and Skin Health
• Anise Hyssop Benefits: Flavour, Pollinators & Medicinal Uses
• Organic Hyssop — Quebec Farm Grown
• Organic Anise Hyssop — Quebec Farm Grown

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