The leaves are best used fresh, but you can keep shoots in a glass of water for several days if you change the water regularly. Mint’s flowers are edible too – see our guide to edible flowers. Sprigs make a refreshing tea to aid digestion and can be added to summer drinks, including Pimm’s. They can be scattered over buttered new potatoes, added to salads or made into mint sauce to complement roast lamb. Mint leaves can be chopped and added to many different dishes, hot or cold, sweet or savoury. The more you pick, the more they’ll produce. Choose the young, soft shoot tips for the most intense flavour. Pick regularly to keep plants compact and ensure they produce lots of fresh new growth. Mint leaves can be harvested from late spring to autumn, before the top growth dies back over winter. Others have purple, pink or white flowers, darker stems, or a taller or more ground-hugging nature.Ī wide range of herbs, including mint, are grown in all the RHS gardens, so do visit them for more herbal inspiration and growing tips.įor advice on choosing and growing all kinds of herbs, see our guides. The different mints can vary in appearance as well as flavour – some have larger or smaller leaves that may be downy, smooth or ruffled, purple-tinted or variegated. There is even an aquatic species – water mint ( Mentha aquatica) – for growing in ponds. But there are many other flavours, including peppermint, apple mint, banana mint and pineapple mint, to name but a few. The standard form of mint is spearmint (Mentha spicata), which is often just sold as garden mint. Alternatively, visit a well-stocked herb garden and make a note of the varieties you prefer. There are many varieties and flavours of mint ( Mentha) to choose from and it’s well worth going to buy plants in person, so you can compare and choose your favourites. Malvern Autumn Show - 27-29 September 2024. RHS Flower Show Tatton Park - 17-21 July 2024.RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival - 2–7 July 2024.Don’t over fertilize, as this can cause the herb to lose its flavor. While fertilizing isn’t a must with this plant, you can give it an occasional dose of all-purpose, water soluble fertilizer or fish emulsion. If desired, you can move your mint outdoors for summer too. In addition, you should rotate the plant every three to four days or so to maintain a more even appearance, as plants tend to bend towards the light, becoming somewhat lopsided. Humidity is another important factor, so mist the plant between watering or set the container on a water-filled tray of pebbles. If the upper part of soil becomes dry to the touch, then watering is needed. These plants prefer to be kept moist but not overly wet. When growing mint inside, there are a few things necessary for its continual care. Set this in a sunny window with at least four to six hours of light each day. Remove the bottom leaves and place the cuttings in a water-filled glass or bottle. If you wish to grow mint plants in water, simply take tip cuttings of about 5 to 6 inches (13-15 cm.) in length from an established mint plant. (18-21 C.) during the day and 55 to 60 degrees F. You’ll also want to locate your mint plant in an area with an indoor temperature of around 65 to 70 degrees F. Water the mint plant well after planting and place it in an area with indirect light, preferably an east-facing window during spring and summer or a west or south-facing one in fall and winter. Pot up your mint plant with a good potting mix, either a regular commercial type or one with equal amounts of sand, peat, and perlite mixed in. For starters, you need a container with adequate drainage for healthy plant growth. You can find mint growing indoors in a pot of soil or even in a bottle of water. Growing and planting mint indoors is easy. In fact, not only can it grow happily in the garden and in pots, but growing mint indoors can also be achieved. Lots of people grow mint out in the garden and for those who know just how vigorous this herb plant is, then it’s no surprise to learn that it thrives easily in a potted environment just as well.
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