How to Grow Mint

Mint is one of the best beginner herbs, because it is easy to grow, hard to kill, smells great, and tastes great in many dishes and even drinks.

We love a good mojito with fresh leaves from the garden! It’s also perfect for containers, because mint likes to spread and tries to take over in traditional in-ground gardens. Many people with full sized gardens in their yard recommend always planting mint in containers for this very reason.

 

Planting

You can start to grow mint by sprinkling mint seeds over moist soil in a small to medium sized pot. Cover very lightly with soil, no deeper than a half cm or quarter inch.  Seeds should sprout in 10-16 days. Thin out to one plant per medium sized pot, about 8″-12″ in diameter.

To eliminate the guesswork in selecting the right size containers for your plants, we’ve put together a list of commonly grown herbs, veggies, fruit and flowers along with the minimum pot sizes required by each.

Starting a container garden? Grab my free guide on choosing the best sized pots for each veggie, fruit, and herb in your container garden – Veggie Garden Potting Guide

 

Watering

If kept indoors, keep well watered. Mint is very hardy, and can handle most water conditions outdoors.

Water when the top inch of soil feels dry to the touch.

 

Where Can I Grow It?

Grow mint either indoors or outdoors, as mint is a hardy plant that does well under many conditions as long as it has a partially sunny to full sun location. Can be kept indoors over winter in a sunny window. Mint will overwinter outdoors in zones 5 and higher, otherwise bring it in when it gets too cold!

Mint is very hardy and likes to spread, so the ideal place for it is in a container. Otherwise, it likes to take over!

 

Growing Tips

You can cut single leaves or entire branches for harvest, and the mint will grow back.  Mint leaves have the best flavor and are the most tender before the plant flowers. Therefore, to extend the harvesting season, pinch off the flowering buds as they appear.

 

Companion Planting

The strong scent of mint acts as a repellent to many garden pests, such as ants, aphids, and the cabbage fly. Mint is a good companion to be planted in and around the following plants: green onions, peas, tomatoes, garlic, and anything from the Brassicas family (cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts).