Mint has a bad reputation for taking over the garden, for good reason. But, there are many reasons to grow mint in your backyard without fear!
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Here are some tips for growing and using mint:
Even though mint is a highly beneficial plant, due to its spreading nature, many of us opt to just go without it all together.
The problem with doing this is that the mint wins.
Seriously, though. We humans are definitely smart enough to outwit the mint, making it possible to enjoy all of its benefits.
Mint is a tasty plant, and there are all kinds of delicious recipes that use mint. Mint is also a powerful medicinal herb.
There are many different varieties of mint such as peppermint, spearmint, chocolate mint, and apple mint, all with similar growing habits.
There are also other plants that are in the mint family that grow with abandon such as lemon balm, bee balm, and catnip that can be included in this discussion as well.
Don’t fear growing mint in your garden! Here’s why.
Mint Can Only Move So Fast
The truth of the matter is that mint is a plant, and while it can and will most definitely spread, it takes some time for this to happen.
I would steer clear of planting mint in or anywhere near your regular garden beds, as it will eventually try to take over.
It’s a great plant for a rocky herb garden, a neglected corner of your yard, or a high traffic area.
This is a mint plant that is just starting to spread after one year in the ground.
Mint will spread from its underground roots, and can cover great distances and go under obstacles to get to where it wants to go, so keep that in mind when planting.
But, this won’t happen overnight, although it may sometimes seem like it. Just keep a close eye on it and harvest any new plants that you don’t want.
Mint Can Be Contained
Probably the best way to grow mint is in a container. This will ensure that it will stay where you want it, without any worry of garden takeover.
If grown in a pot, it tends to get a little sparse and scraggly looking after a couple of years. It never seems to do as well as mint grown in the ground, probably because it really doesn’t like being contained!
Since the rhizomes that cause the mint to spread don’t go very deep, it’s also possible to plant mint in a raised bed without worrying too much about it jumping ship.
It will try and take over the raised bed, however, so make sure to plant other things that can keep up with it.
Other hardy perennial herbs like rosemary, sage, oregano, and thyme can usually tolerate the aggressive nature of mint, especially if they are already established.
You Can Take as Much Mint as You Please (& then some)
The best part about growing a plant that is as aggressive as mint is that you can be just as aggressive back at it without worry of harming it. You can cut handfuls of mint at a time without any damage done.
See a mint plant that is growing where you don’t want it? Chop it down or pull it out and turn it into something delicious. Or cut large bundles of mint and hang to dry for use in the winter months.
Mint Grows Well in the Shade
If there is a shady area of your yard that you have trouble growing things in, try planting mint. While it prefers full sun, it can tolerate some shade, and it will probably keep it from spreading as quickly.
Regardless, I would still take the necessary precautions so that you don’t get a complete mint takeover (unless that’s what you want, of course).
Mint Can Grow from Cuttings
Mint is super easy to propagate from cuttings and will readily re-root itself. You can cut out mint where you don’t want it, put it in water until it grows some roots, then transplant it where you do want it.
In fact, you don’t even have to put it in water first as it will root right in soil. Do it as a science experiment with your kids, or root a bunch of cuttings, pot them up, and give away to friends.
Mint is the gift that keeps on giving (and giving)!
You Can Completely Ignore Mint (& it won’t feel bad)
Let your mint grow and do its thing, then take from it as much as you want, and it will still thrive. Don’t worry about watering or fertilizing it. Really, it will grow without any inputs.
Unless you’re trying to naturally thin it out, it may like a little water from time to time, but it will honestly be okay if you literally ignore it for months on end.
Mint is a great plant for lazy gardeners!
Mint Attracts Beneficial Insects (& Repels the Bad Ones)
Let your mint go to flower and it will attract bees, beneficial wasps, hoverflies (aphid eaters), and tachinid flies (parasitic on nasty bugs).
The smell of the mint plant will also repel houseflies, cabbage moths, ants, aphids, squash bugs, fleas, mosquitoes, and even mice. Not a bad deal, if you ask me!
Mint is Good for Your Pets
Chickens love fresh herbs and mint is no exception. The best part is that it’s also great for them and their coop. It keeps bugs, flies, and parasites at bay, as well as being an antioxidant and digestive aid for your flock.
Be sure to plant lots of mint (as well as other herbs) in and around the coop and run for chickens to nibble on daily.
Mint is also great for cats and dogs. Catnip is actually in the mint family, and is a favorite herb for kitties as well as humans.
While cats and dogs probably shouldn’t eat a whole lot of mint in one sitting, a little bit is great for them. It is a natural flea repellent, and I often see Cosmo the kitty rubbing up against the mint plant.
Mint is Good Food
Of course, mint is an awesome culinary herb! Cut it from the garden with abandon to make all kinds of delicious mint recipes. I particularly like to make tea with it, hot or iced!
Check out my very favorite teapot for making herbal tea here.
Turn it into mint pesto or add it to your favorite homemade cookies, brownies, or this decadent sounding fresh mint cake with with dark chocolate mint frosting.
Get creative and make mint infused honey, a gallon of mint wine, or chocolate mint extract.
This rhubarb mint jam sounds delicious, so does this traditional mint sauce for lamb. You can also just simply chop it up and add to salads or use it as a garnish.
Have a mint julep, mojito party, or raspberry mint infused wine, you deserve it!
See my post on 80+ Mint Recipes for more great ideas on how to use your mint!
Mint is Good Medicine
Mint is also an amazing medicinal herb. It is well known as a digestive aid and breath freshener, and is also good for an upset stomach.
Peppermint is especially great for headaches, and the essential oil can be rubbed on the temples for relief.
It can be helpful for seasonal allergies, and can also be added to body care products like salves and lip balms, soaps, shampoo bars, and lotions.
If you’re interested in learning more about herbal medicine, check out the awesome online courses from the Herbal Academy!
Still too scared to grow mint but want to enjoy all of its benefits? Order high quality, organic dried peppermint or spearmint from Mountain Rose Herbs (my favorite place to get organic dried herbs).
I hope this post has inspired you and given you some reasons to grow mint! It really is a versatile plant that we should not fear having in our yards. Here are some other great posts on how to use up lots of mint:
- 12 Great Ways to Use Mint and Tips for Growing It
- Preserving Mint for Food and Medicine
- More Mint Ideas
- Got Mint?
Do you grow mint in your garden? What is your favorite way to use it?
I dug a hole in my garden, placed a large pot from a tree with the bottom cut off and planted my mint in it. As long as I keep the stegms from rooting it is very well controlled.
I grow my mint in a wide round low ceramic pot and ever since the pot was placed under the water tank tap, where our gardening hands etc are washed, it has thrived, and never looked back….even though at times it often gets flooded!! Before it had struggled if I forgot at times to keep it watered! It has never looked back. It gets some sun and some shade.
It’s great too chopped up in an egg sandwich with mayonnaise🤗
And if it does tunnel its way out of your beds and infiltrates your lawn, it smells absolutely delicious when you mow :)
My mint came from the wild swampy area on my parents’ property where I grew up! I’ve lived in this old farmhouse for over 40 years & have a wonderful mint patch right out my side door so I can get to it for iced tea! When it gets too big or spread out, my husband just mows it! Such a heavenly smell! Our old cat sleeps in the middle of the mint patch! No fleas on her!!
All of the mint in my garden comes from starts given to me by friends. Mine grows in the ugly areas with yucky soil or along the foundation of the house and the shed. If it creeps too close to my other plants, I just yank out the extras and plant them in other needy areas. Not having thought of making wine with the excess, I’m excited to try it!
I have so much mint growing around my patio, I don’t use it just like to smell it. I get more & more every year.
In passing my friend said, “Um, mint, you should plant a tomato and pepper plant right smack I the middle.” I did and never had a caterpillar or bug on my two plants! Would love to have veggie garden with mint mixed in among it!
what about : it makes such a great tea and wunderful syrup . It does.
I love my mint. I have it planted in pots. I have heard it is good to help repel bugs but my plants seem to attract roaches. This is not ok. Any suggestions to get rid of the roaches and is this a common thing.
I have peppermint mint. It’s in a pot at my front door. I saw flies on it today. I have tiny ants out there that it doesn’t bother. Thought that it would help with.
I planted Mint with Gotu Kola and took bets with my friends to see who won. I put them in a really large pot together. To be honest, none of us won because they grew side be side so well. Mind you the Gotu Kola turned up on the other side of the garden so……..
Hey, can u tell me if I am starting a mint plant from seed how should I take care? Should I keep it indoor how much water should I give. How many days will it take until it sprouts/germinate?
Thanks!
I grow mint in pots to keep it contained. It’s great on a hot summers day for making a mojito, or putting in a glass of Pimms!!
I read in the comments of a website on candying edible flowers to candy mint leaves! They’re delicious! I’ve even tried mixing cocoa powder with the ultra fine sugar, and while it tastes great, those don’t seem to want to dry all the way.
I have a bunch of mint in a garden grows great. Your article claims ants don’t like it. I disagree , I had a fire ant bed in my garden ,didn’t seem to bother them.
Last year I planted a few mint plants and lo and behold they came back this year! I never had much luck growing mint but for some reason, these took. I am using them as a border ground cover in my side garden. I use the mint as a garnish for desserts and drinks, but my favorite way to use mint is adding it to a bouquet from my cutting garden. Sometimes I just put a big bunch of mint in a vase! Love the smell!
I LOVE MINT AND I PLACE A MINTTEA BAG AROUND THE HOUSE NO BUGS ALSO I PLACE USED COFFEE GRINDS OUT ON THE FRONT PORCH ,NO BUGS. IT MAKES THE HOUSE SMELL GOOD.
Mint gets entirely too bad of a rap IMO… It is so nice when weeding to disturb some mint and savour the aroma.. A healthy cull is not a lot of work.. I take out as much as 70% each spring.. Keeps it in balance.. If one wants to talk about a pernicious plant.. Lets talk Lily of the valley.. FAR more deserving of a bad rep ???? in the mint category for nice smelling gardens I would include garlic chives.. A great self seeder and golden oregano.. Planted in the right spot it gets bigger each year ???? another true tough nut to control I find is anise hyssop.. A mint cousin but spreads perniciously from wind blown seed.. Took me 3 years to get rid of it once it invaded
I’ve grown mint in pots for years, but it never comes back in the spring. So last year it went into the ground. It came back this year and it’s time to thin. I’ll put it back into the pot but when winter comes to Indiana, it will get covered with bags of leaves. To protect the roots. From freezing.
I had a mint plant by my back faucet in So.Cal. and went crazy. One year I decided to remove it
I dug it all up and tilled the area making sure there were no straggles but guess what was back the
following summer? yep you got it. Never could get rid of this invasive plant so when you plant it
make sure it you know it there to stay. Probably pot planting would solve the problem.
I bought small container of Chocolate Mint last weekend, and the leaves have black spots! Haven’t replanted yet, but maybe I’m watering too much? Any particulars about potting soil or can I just put in bed without potting soil?
I planted spearmint next to my vegetable garden in a very large pot and buried it in the ground, to keep it from spreading. It worked very well for me for 8 years.
I have mint growing around my blackberry plants. Should I worry it will choke out the berries?
I don’t think that any plant can choke out blackberry brambles! I wouldn’t worry about it :)
I would not plant mint around your berry bushes. They will eventually take over. My blackberry and raspberry buses grow and spread rapidly and I love it because the fruit is so delicious. Mint grows rapidly as well and it is a great herb. I grow my mint in a garden bed that is mainly mint, stevia, basil and parsley. I am constantly cutting back the mint and drying it out for teas or flavoring. Just gather a handful of long stems, tie them with some yarn and hang them on a hook indoors or in your garage. I have a hook shelf in my laundry room where I dry all my herbs.
I live in Arizona where it is very dry and hot. How can I plant mint? Can I plant it in a pot and keep it inside? What would be best?
I don’t have much experience in hot and dry climates, but I would say keep it in the shade and make sure that it gets plenty of water. You could try it in a pot inside as well. Mint generally isn’t super picky, but I think that the summer heat you have might be a bit much for it.
I live in the high desert where it is windy all year and hot, hot in the summers and cold with snow in the winters. We grow mint under the outdoor faucets where any drips waters it and it grows up to cover unsightly faucets. It gets a bit ragged in the dead of winter but comes back lush and beautiful in the spring. My cat enjoys catnip in an indoor sunny window in the winter and in pots on the patio in the summer.
My mother also lives in AZ.. south of Tucson. Her mint thrives in the shaded porch area with regular water.
I also live in az, big deep pot, where it is in the shade! Water at night or right at dark. Never water during the hot part of the day. Not sure why. I have just figured out, when I do plants burn and it’s just not good.
Thanks for sharing this. The primary reason I grow peppermint is that it’s been very effective as a mouse repellant. There is a farm field behind our backyard fence and every time that field got worked over, we’d have mice in the house. I started growing peppermint in 2013. I sbnip off the leaves and put them in small mesh sachets. Those sachets have gone in the pantry, closets, attic, garage, etc. No more mice in the house!
Mice also hate the smell of Lavender…
What about Corsican mint? We have peppermint growing wild in and around our creek bed (Southern tier on NY) and I’m wondering how the corsican mint would do in this area.
Where can I purchase a mint plant?
They have them at Lowes and Home Depot, just find a local nursery.
I bought some mint at Safeway in the section of herbs, etc..in small plastic container….cut bottom of stalk so fresh end, put in water, and the mint is growing….and will be ready for outdoors when spring comes. Cost? $2.10
Most grocery store will have small mint in plastic bags ( in soil). That’s where I bought my spearamint plant..
Good idea. Maybe I will have better luck with supermarket mint.
i hate that everyone tells me how easy it is to grow mint. i’ve more than a few plants and placed them on my porch; some with full sun, withered; some with shade, withered; some with watering, withered; some with way less watering, withered. i currently bought a beautiful large mint plant to give me a headstart and i think the heat is beating it up so i put it in the shade and water 1 day yes and 1 day no. help
I have he same problem!
Same thing happened to me. Put in the ground it took off. I bought a plant last year in a pot. I put it in a bigger pot and it was ok for a while but withered and died. What to do. Mojitos are waiting!!
I’ve been meaning to tell you, Colleen, thank you for the share! I’ll have to post a photo of our mint patch now. It is over in a neglected corner of the yard, behind the wood pile, where no sprinklers spray. It loves the neglect, lol. I am definitely trying Beth’s mint pesto. That’s one mint recipe I haven’t tried! XO!
In the suburbs, I grew mint in pots on the back deck. Now we have land and I waited a year to decide where to put the mint, knowing it would be aggressive. The perfect spot? Partial sun tucked away in a corner of the neglected front flower bed beside the front porch. It’s chocolate mint and it is delicious! I get bored with mint tea (although it’s great for tummy aches) so thank you for the recipe inspiration. I think I will make a mint-infused oil and use that in my next batch of lotion. Yay for mint!
I have several mints but keep them contained to pots with deep water trays in full sun. They do very well.
I’m having a real issue keeping my chocolate mint alive any tips would be great it’s in a pot with plant soil that feeds for 6 months i just started to put it more in the sun to see if that would help. Not sure what else to do. I water when dry.
Mint does not love to be “fed”(maybe a small amount of natural soil amendments and compost. Water sparingly, then “LOOK OUT” LOL!
My mint thrives in 1″ of water in my pond all year round. it gets both sun & shade. I prune it regularly, place it in a zip lock bag in the freezer until there is enough to fill my dehydrator then store it the same as store bought.
I have the same trouble
my mint – I’ve kept in planters all year from clippings from other plants I had in planters and transplanted to a partially shaded area. It’s on the west side of my garage but gets afternoon sun. The transplanted mint gets watered and has spread a lot and helped with my mosquitoes. My chocolate mint, was in a planter and was transplanted. It wasn’t fairing well being in direct sunlight and watering whenever soil got dry. I shifted to a slightly shaded area and it thrived, on the other side of my porch. My soil in planter was the “good stuff” but I still put miracle grow water solution in it. But it thrived in the slightly shaded to 1/2 shaded area. I hope this helps.
Mint likes to stay wet or at least damp.
Mine gets watered every day, and is growing like mad…i dont know why someone on here said “water sparingly” If its in a pot like mine is, it needs a good drink of water everyday in the summer