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How to Grow Mint: Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Tips

Mint is an easy herb to grow in your garden and can add flavor to every meal.

Botanical Name
Mentha
Grown as
Perennial
USDA Zones
3a
3b
4a
4b
5a
5b
6a
6b
7a
7b
8a
8b
9a
9b
Toxicity
Toxic to Dogs and Cats
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Water Needs
Moderate
Height
1–3 feet
Spread
1–3 feet
Soil pH
Neutral
Bloom Time
Summer
Flower Color
Pink
Purple
White
Special Features
Container-Friendly
Disease-Resistant
Erosion Control
Fragrant
Long Blooming
Low Maintenance
Attracts Butterflies
Attracts Hummingbirds
Attracts Pollinators
Deer-resistant
Rabbit-resistant
Resilience
Clay Soil Tolerant
Cold Hardy
Heat-Tolerant
Salt Tolerant
Plant Type
Herbs
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Mint is like that friend who’s fun to have around… but totally takes over the party if you’re not careful! With its refreshing flavor, heavenly scent, and can’t-stop-won’t-stop attitude, mint is a breeze to grow; just give it boundaries. 

Whether you’re dreaming of mojitos, mint tea, or a garden that smells like candy, we’ll show you how to plant, tame, and enjoy this spirited little herb.

Mint is a perennial herb with very fragrant, toothed leaves and tiny purple, pink, or white flowers. There are many varieties of mint—all fragrant, whether shiny or fuzzy, smooth or crinkled, bright green or variegated. However, you can always tell a member of the mint family by its square stem. Rolling it between your fingers, you’ll notice an aromatic scent and think of candy, sweet teas, or even mint juleps.

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As well as kitchen companions, mints are used as garden accents, ground covers, air fresheners, and herbal medicines. They’re as beautiful as they are functional and foolproof to grow, thriving in sun and shade all over North America. Since mint can be a vigorous spreader, you must be careful where you plant it.

Planting

  • Mints are vigorous perennials that thrive in light soil with good drainage.
  • Ideally, they prefer a moist but well-drained site, something like their native habitat along stream banks.
  • Most will grow in sun or partial shade; the variegated types may require some protection from direct sun.
  • For outdoor growing, plant one or two purchased plants (or one or two cuttings from a friend) about two feet apart in moist soil. One or two plants will easily cover the ground. Mint should grow to be one or two feet tall.
  • Mint is a vigorous grower that needs to be contained, or it will send out its runners and spread all over your garden. The key is to contain the plant’s roots. Whether in the ground or above ground, plant mint in a pot. We suggest planting each mint in a 10-inch pot with drainage holes. You can then sink this pot into the ground or another larger container of soil.
  • If you are fine with mint becoming a ground cover and understand that it may become invasive, plant in its own raised bed or separate area.
  • In the garden, plant mint near cabbage and tomatoes—in pots, again, in order to prevent it from spreading and stealing nutrients from your crops!

Check out this video to learn more about how to grow mint. 

Growing

  • Minimal care is needed for mint. For outdoor plants, use a light mulch. This will help keep the soil moist and keep the leaves clean.
  • Indoor plants should be watered regularly to keep the soil evenly moist.
  • At first, mints develop into well-behaved-looking, bushy, upright clumps, but they soon set out to conquer new territory with horizontal runners and underground rhizomes. Unless you block the advance, a peppermint plant can become a sprawling 4-foot giant in just 1 year. It’s not the stuff of horror movies, however. Mints benefit from picking and pruning. They are shallow-rooted and easy to pull out, so there’s no reason to worry as long as you provide physical barriers such as walls, walkways, or containers.
a basket of freshly picked mint
Photo Credit: Juta/Shutterstock

Harvesting

  • Frequent harvesting is the key to keeping mint plants at their best. Young leaves have more flavor than old ones, and mint can be harvested as soon as it comes up in spring. Although fresh is best, and sprigs should be kept in water for a few days, mint leaves can be frozen or air-dried in bunches.
  • Right before flowering, cut the stems 1 inch from the ground. You can harvest one mint plant two or three times in one growing season.
  • You can also pick the leaves as you need them.
  • You can grow the plants indoors for fresh leaves throughout the winter. If you want to dry them, it’s best to cut the leaves right before flowering. Store the dried leaves in an airtight container.

Propagating Mint

The best way to propagate mints is by taking cuttings from those that you like best. It’s easy—take 6-inch cuttings of rooted stems and plant them horizontally in the soil. Mint stems will also root in a glass of water. Start with a small cutting from an established plant. Any gardening friend will give you a cutting of a favorite mint.

propogating mint cuttings
Photo Credit: Joannawnuk/Shutterstock


 

Pests and Problems

Spacing for Mint

Types

  • Apple/Pineapple Mint: Mentha suaveolens
  • Corsican Mint: Mentha requienii
  • Pennyroyal: Mentha pulegium
  • Peppermint: Mentha x piperita
  • Citrus Mint: Mentha x piperita var. citrata
  • Spearmint: Mentha spicata

Wit and Wisdom

“If any man can name … all the varieties of mint, he must know how many fish swim in the Indian Ocean.”  –Walafrid Strabo (c. 808–849)

Herbs

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana.

Read more from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 01/22/2016 - 12:44

Mint is known to deter white cabbage moths, ants, rodents, flea beetles, and aphids.

 <span>Mimi</span> Tue, 01/19/2016 - 15:19
I really need help because my mint seed did germinate but none of them grow leaves. they just grow thin around 1inch and then died because no leaves. I live in tropical island with 32C temperature and high humidity. but I tried to keep the pots in shaded area where the light still reach all day. what should I do to make them grow leaves?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Fri, 01/22/2016 - 12:45

Seedlings need lots of light (14 to 16 hours is ideal). Use tepid water to keep the soil moist (and do not overwater). Ventilation and air circulation is very important. Moving air helps strengthen the stems.

 <span>Vivian</span> Tue, 01/19/2016 - 10:10
Can mint grow during the rainy reason? Will the rains destroy it?
<span>Mbu2092</span> Wed, 01/06/2016 - 03:28
I grow lemon mint from seeds and it does germinate about 2/3 days but it doesn't stay long. within a week the stem weak and start to fall. Few batches i tried and the symptom same. Method : 1. Paper towel. After transplant it dead without any chances to live. 2. Green house. Few batches I studied how to make it live but i'm stuck. I tried reducing, increasing amount of water and it still died around 1/2 weeks. I put it in a small pot with transparent plastic covered. Putting it to warm place (up the fridge). After it germinate, I put under the shade of daylight and put back up the fridge during night time. I keep on repeating this but it choose to die. Anyone can advise me. My place temperature is 25 - 35 annually.
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 01/06/2016 - 16:23

Seedlings need lots of light (14 to 16 hours is ideal). If you don't have enough natural light fluorescent shop lights work well. Use tepid water to keep the soil moist (do not overwater). Ventilation and air circulation is important. Moving air helps strengthen the stems. You can use a small fan. If using plastic to start the seeds remove as soon as seeds germinate.

 <span>Hillbillyjeff</span> Mon, 01/04/2016 - 18:06
I know mint is an aggressive plant so my plans are to plant it in an old tractor tire I have that is filled with black dirt, composted cow manure, and peat. I have been growing peppers in this for the last two seasons. My question is will this keep the mint in its place? It is about 40 feet from my 4 raised beds and no where near my two gardens. Will its roots grow out the bottom of this tire and spread out into the grass?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Tue, 01/05/2016 - 18:26

Even if your mint is growing in a raised bed, such as a tire, if there is no barrier at the bottom, the roots (runners) will find their way underground and spread, working their way under the tire to the rest of the lawn. In many cases, mints spread aggressively. It's best to plant them in a pot (you could even place the pot in the center of the tire); you could also sink the pot down so that the rim is just above the soil.

 <span>Bunny Rabbit</span> Sat, 12/19/2015 - 09:52
I have 2 types of mint in my herb garden - normal and lemon . Both I had put a small sprig and two years later they have grown into mini jungles .Though I use them daily in my herb tea . If you don't want this , then be careful and plant them in pots.
<span>Shawna</span> Tue, 07/05/2016 - 08:12
I have a funny story. I planted mint in a pot and kind of buried the pot for insulation. My friend pulled the pot up and I heard this terrible ripping sound. My roots had gone under the pot into that ground. That year my pot did nothing and I thought my mint was dead. Nop, it had moved down into the ground under the pot and now I have a yard full of wonderful smelling mint. And very few bugs.