| Description | Apple Mint (Mentha suaveolens) is a perennial rhizomatous herb with a fruity, minty flavor, used in culinary applications such as teas and salads, as well as for ornamental purposes. |
|---|---|
| Plant Type | Perennials Hardy |
| Hardiness Zone | 5-9 |
| Sunlight | full sun |
| Moisture | Average is best; the site's moisture determines how fast they spread. |
| Soil & Site | Average soil; avoid moist conditions, as the plant will spread rapidly. |
| Flowers | Terminal spikes of small pink to white flowers in the summer. |
| Leaves | Leaves are oblong to ovate, light green, 2" long. Leaves have a fruity fragrance and taste, and may be used to flavor teas, in salads, or as a garnish. Leaves are covered with fine silvery hairs |
| Stems | Plants are rhizomatous and spread quickly. |
| Dimensions | Gets 1-3 feet tall, spreads rapidly. It cannot be overstated how aggressively this mint will spread. All my mints were in large plastic nursery containers that were buried in the soil. Even this will only slow down their spread. |
| Maintenance | Digging out spreading rhizomes. |
| Propagation | cuttings, division, seeds |
| Native Site | The genus name comes from Minthe or Menthe, a water nymph in Greek mythology who Persephone transformed into a mint plant in revenge for Minthe's ongoing affair with Hades, Persephone's husband. The specific epithet means sweet-scented. |
| Misc Facts | AKA Apple Mint, Pineapple Mint, Woolly Mint, or Round-leafed Mint. The genus name comes from Minthe or Menthe, a water nymph in Greek mythology who was transformed by Persephone into a mint plant in revenge for Minthe's ongoing affair with Hades, Persephone's husband. The specific epithet means sweet-scented. |
| Notes & Reference | #97-Mints (Barbara Perry Lawton), #144-Missouri Botanical Gardens website (www.missouribotanicalgarden.org), #274-Site Authors' observations and growing experiences |
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