A creeping trailing mint with a good peppermint flavour, useful as a rub for insect bites and as an ant repellent. Edible but shouldn’t be eaten whilst pregnant or suffering kidney disease. 9x9cm pot (8cm depth)
Description
- Loved by bees
- Ground cover
- Aromatic
- Trails over pots
This little creeper has a scent and taste reminiscent of peppermint. The oil of pennyroyal helps contract the uterus and has been used in the past to help with childbirth, but also to induce abortion. It spreads nicely into grass and releases scent when walked on and in the process deters ants.
Plant Care
- Height: Creeping
- Type: Hardy
- Aspect: Sun/shade
- Soil: Any/alkaline
- Flower colour: Purple
- Flowering period: July - September
Easy to grow, pennyroyal produces its runners on the surface of the soil, rooting as it goes. It likes a rich soil and will grow happily in sun or shade so long as it doesn’t dry out completely in summer. It is usually grown in a pot, simply because in the ground it spreads away out of control, the exception being in the lawn, where it seems to integrate nicely with the grass in small patches and give a pleasant waft when walked on. In spring it is worth splitting the root ball of pot grown pennyroyal and replanting half with fresh compost to reinvigorate it.
Usage
A lovely creeping ground cover, pennyroyal can be grown in grass to add a blast of smell when walked on, the added benefit being the scent acts as an ant deterrent. I once saw an experiment where a green juicy circle was made on concrete with a bunch pennyroyal and an ant placed in the middle – it ran round and round but wouldn’t run over the line. It has also been used to deter fleas and burning pennyroyal helps deter insects of all kinds.
The oil produced from pennyroyal is a strong abortifacient and has a contracting action on the womb, so has been used in childbirth but also to get rid of unwanted pregnancies. High doses can damage the kidneys. Even though this is the oil, fresh pennyroyal is not recommended for eating by during pregnancy.
Pennyroyal has a peppermint flavour that can be used in small amounts in for flavouring in food. The flowers are loved by bees and pollinating insects.