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How to Grow Mint: Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Tips

Mint is an easy herb to grow in your garden and can add flavor to every meal.

Botanical Name
Mentha
Plant Type
Herbs
Sun Exposure
Full Sun

Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Mint

Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Mint is like that friend who’s fun to have around… but totally takes over the party if you’re not careful! With its refreshing flavor, heavenly scent, and can’t-stop-won’t-stop attitude, mint is a breeze to grow; just give it boundaries. Whether you’re dreaming of mojitos, mint tea, or a garden that smells like candy, we’ll show you how to plant, tame, and enjoy this spirited little herb.

 

About Mint

Mint is a perennial herb with very fragrant, toothed leaves and tiny purple, pink, or white flowers. There are many varieties of mint—all fragrant, whether shiny or fuzzy, smooth or crinkled, bright green or variegated. However, you can always tell a member of the mint family by its square stem. Rolling it between your fingers, you’ll notice an aromatic scent and think of candy, sweet teas, or even mint juleps.

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As well as kitchen companions, mints are used as garden accents, ground covers, air fresheners, and herbal medicines. They’re as beautiful as they are functional and foolproof to grow, thriving in sun and shade all over North America. Since mint can be a vigorous spreader, you must be careful where you plant it.

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Planting

  • Mints are vigorous perennials that thrive in light soil with good drainage.
  • Ideally, they prefer a moist but well-drained site, something like their native habitat along stream banks.
  • Most will grow in sun or partial shade; the variegated types may require some protection from direct sun.
  • For outdoor growing, plant one or two purchased plants (or one or two cuttings from a friend) about two feet apart in moist soil. One or two plants will easily cover the ground. Mint should grow to be one or two feet tall.
  • Mint is a vigorous grower that needs to be contained, or it will send out its runners and spread all over your garden. The key is to contain the plant’s roots. Whether in the ground or above ground, plant mint in a pot. We suggest planting each mint in a 10-inch pot with drainage holes. You can then sink this pot into the ground or another larger container of soil.
  • If you are fine with mint becoming a ground cover and understand that it may become invasive, plant in its own raised bed or separate area.
  • In the garden, plant mint near cabbage and tomatoes—in pots, again, in order to prevent it from spreading and stealing nutrients from your crops!

Check out this video to learn more about how to grow mint. 

Growing

  • Minimal care is needed for mint. For outdoor plants, use a light mulch. This will help keep the soil moist and keep the leaves clean.
  • Indoor plants should be watered regularly to keep the soil evenly moist.
  • At first, mints develop into well-behaved-looking, bushy, upright clumps, but they soon set out to conquer new territory with horizontal runners and underground rhizomes. Unless you block the advance, a peppermint plant can become a sprawling 4-foot giant in just 1 year. It’s not the stuff of horror movies, however. Mints benefit from picking and pruning. They are shallow-rooted and easy to pull out, so there’s no reason to worry as long as you provide physical barriers such as walls, walkways, or containers.
a basket of freshly picked mint
Photo Credit: Juta/Shutterstock

Types

  • Apple/Pineapple Mint: Mentha suaveolens
  • Corsican Mint: Mentha requienii
  • Pennyroyal: Mentha pulegium
  • Peppermint: Mentha x piperita
  • Citrus Mint: Mentha x piperita var. citrata
  • Spearmint: Mentha spicata

Harvesting

  • Frequent harvesting is the key to keeping mint plants at their best. Young leaves have more flavor than old ones, and mint can be harvested as soon as it comes up in spring. Although fresh is best, and sprigs should be kept in water for a few days, mint leaves can be frozen or air-dried in bunches.
  • Right before flowering, cut the stems 1 inch from the ground. You can harvest one mint plant two or three times in one growing season.
  • You can also pick the leaves as you need them.
  • You can grow the plants indoors for fresh leaves throughout the winter. If you want to dry them, it’s best to cut the leaves right before flowering. Store the dried leaves in an airtight container.

Propagating Mint

The best way to propagate mints is by taking cuttings from those that you like best. It’s easy—take 6-inch cuttings of rooted stems and plant them horizontally in the soil. Mint stems will also root in a glass of water. Start with a small cutting from an established plant. Any gardening friend will give you a cutting of a favorite mint.

propogating mint cuttings
Photo Credit: Joannawnuk/Shutterstock


 

Gardening Products

Pests/Diseases

Spacing for Mint

Wit and Wisdom

“If any man can name … all the varieties of mint, he must know how many fish swim in the Indian Ocean.”  –Walafrid Strabo (c. 808–849)

Recipes
Minted Fruit Mold
Mint Lemonade
Cilantro and Mint Sauce

Cooking Notes

Serious cooks generally prefer spearmint for savory dishes and peppermint for desserts. Try apple or orange mint for a delicate mint taste in fruit salads, yogurt, or tea. Mint lurks in the background in Middle Eastern salads, such as tabouli, and does well with lamb. It also goes with peas, zucchini, fresh beans, marinades for summer vegetables, cold soups, fruit salads, and cheese.

mint_ice_cubes_full_width.jpg
Credit: Anna Shepulova/Shutterstock

Tip! Make flavored ice cubes by freezing trays of strong mint tea, then use the ice cubes for your drinks!

Herbs
About The Author
Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c...
Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Tonycardial</span> Sat, 07/05/2014 - 09:50
I HAVE READ TIPS GALORE ABOUT HARVESTING MINT AND RECIPES FOR USAGE... BUT, ARE THE STEMS GOOD FOR ANY THING, OR ARE THEY SIMPLY DISCARDED???
<span>Angee</span> Wed, 06/04/2014 - 09:43
I brought two chocolate mint from a local nursery a week and half ago, and have been growing them under same condition and care in their original pot, before I move both of them in one big pot. I have noticed one is growing beautifully upright and nice big green leafs, but the other one is growing many branches side ways, different directions with smaller and slightly darker leaves. Now I'm afraid to put them in one pot, not sure if one would ruin the other one. What is wrong with the uglier plant? Anyway to fix it? Thank you :)
<span>Hosanna Vaught</span> Fri, 08/14/2015 - 20:43
You have two different kinds of mint. One sounds like spearmint or peppermint, the dark one is chocolate mint. At least, that's what it sounds like. Smell them, if they're different, they'll smell exactly like the gum, candy, or cookie they're used for. (And, of course, if they smell different, they're not the same kind.)
<span>Christine Eliz…</span> Thu, 06/05/2014 - 03:24
It's got offshoots,, is trying to expand. I
<span>Leane</span> Fri, 05/23/2014 - 00:11
When exactly is mint planted and harvested?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 05/23/2014 - 09:42

Mint seedlings can be planted any time during the growing season, but it is best to do so in spring to help the plants to establish themselves before winter; in frost-free climates, you can plant in early fall.

 

As soon as the plants develop several large leaves, you can harvest lightly, taking a few leaves each time (but don't strip the plant of leaves, leave plenty behind), all the growing season. Best time to harvest for flavor is in the morning. The flavor changes when the plants flower, so keep pinching off any flower buds (unless you are planning a large harvest, in which case, see below). Also pinch the growing tips periodically to deter flowering and promote bushy growth.

 

As an alternative, you can do one or more larger harvests. In this case, wait a year or two for a newly planted plant to establish. Then just before the plant flowers (which is when the flavor is more intense), cut the plant about 6 inches from the base, leaving several leaves. The plant may grow back one or two times during the season for more harvesting.

 

 

 <span>Skieranne</span> Thu, 05/22/2014 - 02:18
i have 2 small spearmint plants in containers on my terrace with low light in NYC - they seem to be doing fine except one plant has tiny white flies when i shake the plant and the other (right next to it) does not i use the leaves to put into my water bottle for a fresh different taste - if i shake the leaves and wash them in cold water are they safe to then put into my water bottles ? some leaves seem a little bitten into and i simple toss those without putting them in my water bottles any thoughts because if the insects will hurt me if i put the leaves in drinking water i'll just toss the plants - or is there something safe i can put on them to get rid of the little flying things ? thanks for any suggestions
<span>Dale Morrison</span> Fri, 05/09/2014 - 20:36
Will taller plants still grow up through mint plants? Like roses or dahlias? Thanks.
<span>Cindy Carr</span> Sun, 04/27/2014 - 12:27
What other plants will work well in the same bed with mint and not get choked out?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 04/29/2014 - 08:40

We tend to plant mint in its own bed or container. In a bed, a good tip is to submerge a pot in the ground.
Herbs such as oregano and prostrate rosemary may be able to hold their own. Let us know what you discover!