Spearmint is a herb I have in my garden. I have other mints too applemint and ginger mint. There are quite a few varieties of mint I think over 40.
Spearmint the Latin name Mentha spicata is an herbaceous perennial plant .This plant commonly grown in gardens for culinary use, its good in mint sauces, mint teas or with new potatoes. The spearmint cultivar Moroccan mint is I think the best for mint sauce. The mint family of plants comes from central and southern Europe. Mint likes wet soil to grow in. Spearmint has bright green ovate wrinkled leaves that grow in intervals up the stem opposite other. The lilac pink/white flowers grow in a spike at the end of the stem. It flowers in August. Spearmint grows to a height of30cm-1 metre /12-30 inches
Spearmint is very easy to grow. If you cut a stem/ cutting of a friends mint and put it in water it will soon grow roots you can them plant it in a pot or your garden and it will grow into a large mint patch quite quickly. It would be faster though to dig up a root or two of your friends plant and grow this in your garden., if you have no friend or relative with a spearmint you can easily buy then at garden centres or on line for a few pounds at http://www.crocus.co.uk/ has it for £2.99p http://www.growersorganics.com/s.php has it for £1.50p per plant. Mine is in fact an heirloom the mint was a plant grown from a sprig of my fathers mint , his mint a root from his father.
Once you have spearmint it is easy to grow and look after. In fact spearmint almost grows too easily it will spread all over your garden if you do not control it. The roots are very invasive spreading everywhere. Spearmint is good grown in a pot to keep it contained. Spearmint likes a wet soil with plenty of organic material in it. Spearmint likes the partial shade but will flourish in full sun. Pick a few leaves of spearmint to use fresh in your recipes or dry some for winter use. I love the smell of mint When I am in the garden I will often pick a sprig crush the leaves and enjoy the aroma. The smell of mint discorages greenfly from your plants I have heard.
Mint is used in many products, tooth pastes and sweets. The links at the bottom of this review tells me you can get spearmint flavoured condoms. (well each to his/her own) You could use it in your bath . I remember as a child my mum putting my head over a bowl of hot water and mint leaves my covered with a towel to make a tent she said the at breathing the mint in would help my cold. Mint is a calmative it is used to make a mint tea it is refreshing hot or cold. . Mint is traditionally used for stomach aches, diarrhoea, nausea, colds, headaches, cramps, and fevers, I have occasionally made my own mint tea using a few sprigs of mint in my normal cup of tea. There are many varieties of mint teas available to buy, two well known tea packers Twinning's tea and Clipper teas both have one made with spearmint.
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Dec 30th, 2006
(Jan 21st, 2007)
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