Peppermint - Or Another Mint?

September 9, 2008

Howdy Genevive,

Hi all, I have a question about peppermint growing by my pond.

> Someone told me this was peppermint. I have added some pics in the

> photo area under Genevive. If this is peppermint, what can I use it

> for because it is growing like crazy? Thanks, Genevive

>

First, your photos are mighty nice .. I salute you .. and your camera. ;-)

Second .. this is not an area where I have a lot of expertise .. but from

first glance I thought it might be Mentha arvensis .. I might be wrong and

would be happy if someone corrects me on this one. I just printed out a

copy of your photos .. took them outside and laid them alongside the

Peppermint we have growing here .. and they don't match what I have growing.

Then I went on line and looked for some photos of Mentha arvensis .. they

are here:

http://www.henriettesherbal.com/pictures/p09/pages/mentha-arvensis-5.htm

http://www.all-creatures.org/picb/wfshl-mint-am-13.html

The problem with identifying some Mints is that the leaves will NOT always

take the same shape .. in some cases it depends on the location in which

they are grown. I have seen Peppermint and Mentha arvensis with both both

long, narrow leaves .. and shorter, rounder leaves. Taste is a great way

to ID them .. if you have a basis for comparision .. that is, you know what

they should taste like. ;-)

Another problem is that the Mints cross over a lot .. for example,

Peppermint is a cross between Mentha aquatica and Mentha spicata.

Another problem with the Mint Family (Lamiaceae) is that the names of plants

in that group can be as confusing as those in the Citrus group. For

example, Mentha arvensis has a large number of Common Names .. and

Scientific Names .. some of the many synonyms are M. arvensis ssp. borealis,

and ssp. canadensis, and ssp. glabrata, and ssp. haplocalyx, and ssp.

lanata, and ssp. sativa, and var. villosa, and Mentha gentilis, and Mentha

glabrior, and Mentha penardii .. to name a few. ;-)

I think that what you have is not Peppermint .. I think it is Mentha

arvensis .. sometimes called Field Mint or Apple Mint. I might be wrong so

I am not willing to stand by my opinion in the face of opposition. ;-)

As for using the plants .. distillation is one option but you would need a

good bit to do that .. expect maybe 18 kilograms of oil from 1 metric ton of

plants. ;-) More practical uses can be found all over the Net .. same

goes for Peppermint .. here is one good take on it.

http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Mentha+arvensis+villosa

Y'all keep smiling. :-)

Butch .. http://www.AV-AT.com

September 10, 2008

It does look like an insanely prolific mint that I once bought as " applemint " ,

one of the names of mentha arvensis.

I have been ripping it out of the vegetable garden by the handful.

Ien in the Kootenays

http://freegreenliving.com (

September 12, 2008

Thanks for your input. Now I'm really confused...LOL. just kidding. It's

growing like crazy and I think that next year I'll have even more. Last year I

didn't see any flowers on it. I was just wondering what I could use it for like

maybe tea... I don't know anything about distillation. So if I can use it as a