Mint

Common: Mint

Herb

Light: Prefers partial shade but not picky

Planting: Plant 1/4" deep, 1-1.5 ' between plants. Plant April 15 outdoors.

Care: Pinch stem ends off each spring to keep the plants bushy and encourage regrowth. At the end of the gardening season, prune plants back to near ground level and top-dress with compost.

Harvest: To harvest mint, pick leaves in the morning when the oils are strongest. Young leaves have better flavor than mature ones. Crushing mint leaves releases the oils and the pleasant, strong, soothing flavor, if using in a recipe, I always recommend slight crushing (if using whole leaf) or chopping prior to use. Use fresh.

Notes:

Can be invasive-good candidate for container gardening

Many varieties: chocolate mint, grapefruit mint, lemon mint, banana mint, silver mint peppermint and spearmint!

Mint recipes