This poorly understood taxon of scattered northeastern and Appalachian localities (F, Cr, K) is considered to have originated from natural hybrids between (a) didyma and (b) fistulosa or clinopodia. Introgression of fistulosa into didyma can occur within a few decades of road-building through forests (Egler 1973). There are also several horticultural hybrids that appear to have originated from hybrids of fistulosa and didyma; the popular "Violet Queen" has much resistance to powdery mildew (Hawke 1998). Some colls. of media have been confused with "sp. nov. 2" (see notes there). The few wild Ky. colls. that match typical media are mostly from in or near the Red River Gorge area (MENI, POWE, WOLF at KY, EKY). They could have horticultural origins, perhaps even from didyma planted at old home sites then hybridizing with local fistulosa. Some anomalous colls. (mapped here as open dots) may be Monarda sp. nov. 1 x media (MADI at GH, MENI at NY) or clinopodia x media (BELL and HARL at GH). F combined media (only 3 colls. at GH) with fistulosa var. rubra Gray (only 1 coll. at GH). That variety has been reported from Ky. by McClintock & Epling (1942), but there is no known coll. Var. rubra may be native only in the Southern Appalachians (Scora 1967, W). It has relatively narrow leaves and more hairy flowers, compared to media, and may have resulted from introgression of didyma into fistulosa.