A very pretty mint with gold splashes on the leaves, this is perfect for summer drinks (think Pimm’s), fruit, salads and as a refreshing chilled tea. It doesn’t spread as rapidly as other mints. 9x9cm pot (8cm depth)
Description
- Will trail over pots
- Aromatic
- Easy to grow
- Attractive leaves
As well as a culinary herb and its use in confectionary, mint has traditionally been used as a tea for treating headaches and digestive disorders, in modern medicine it is widely used in the treatment of gastrointestinal tract disorders and relieving wind and colic. The flowers are very attractive to bees and it is thought to be a mouse and rat repellent. Ginger mint, so called because of the splashes of yellow/orange on the leaves rather than the flavour, is a great little sweet tasting herb, perfect for summer drinks, salads and desserts and makes a lovely soft aromatic tea.
Plant Care
- Height: 30-60cm
- Type: Hardy
- Aspect: Sun/shade
- Soil: Any/alkaline
- Flower colour: Purple
- Flowering period: July - September
On the whole mints are fast growing perennials that love good rich soil and grow in both sun and shade successfully. Planted in heavy soils they spread rapidly and unless you have plenty of space can become a bit of a menace, in lighter soils their spread is limited and in very dry summers they can die. Most people grow their mints in containers and in the first year they are usually gorgeous and lush, it is in the second year when they emerge again in spring that the leaves are tiny and grow mostly around the edges of the container. This is because they grow so fast that the roots have filled the container completely and though addition feeding helps, there is just not enough oomph left in the soil to support a vigorous plant. The roots of ginger mint tends to be more fragile and not quite as invasive as some other mints and in spring it can re-invigorated by tipping it from its pot and taking about a third of the root ball away, before replanting it back in the container with fresh compost.
Usage
This lower growing mint with gold splashed leaves looks beautiful in pots and containers where it trails over the sides. It is a sweet aromatic mint suited to desserts, summer drinks, especially Pimm’s, in salads, with new potatoes and makes a sweet caramel like tea that can be drunk either hot or chilled. The flowers, like all mints are loved by bees and pollinating insects.