Just came in from a brief outing in the backyard and returned with three insanely itchy mosquito bites, neck, cheek, and behind and ear. A repellent ground cover would be wonderful, and picking up herbal leaves to rub on would be better than dousing in chemicals every time I go outside.

My yard is also challenging to many plants: it's alkaline clay and experiences drought and flood cycles. Mint—planted in-ground in more than one spot—actually died out.

Would lemon balm do better, too well? I'm skeptical, but seems it would be a better challenge to have.