The mints I showed before, in Part 1, aren’t the only ones in the raised bed. I didn’t buy a couple that didn’t really appeal to me last year (Banana Mint and Grapefruit Mint) but here are the others I did get. I just like having them around to smell. In addition, I planted in a perennial bed one plant of a hardy mint which I am calling Alaska Mint. (It is probably Mentha avensis or Mentha canadensis.) It is trying to crowd out the perennials, though right now of course it is not as large as the transplants.
One of my favorite uses for mint is to chop the leaves fine and add them to unflavored Greek yogurt along with honey, walnuts and a bit of lemon juice.
This time I’m using a slide show; click on any small image to get to the show.
-
- Peppermint (Mentha piperata)
-
- Ginger Mint (Mentha x gracilis)
-
- Spearmint (Mentha spicata)
-
- Mojito Mint (Mentha x villosa)
-
- Apple Mint (Mentha rotundifolia)
-
- Lime Mint
-
- Kentucky Colonel (Mentha spicata)
-
- Chocolate Mint (Mentha piperata)
-
- Alaska Hardy Mint
And the first rose of summer, photographed June 3. This is a wild rose, of the kind that makes up the undergrowth of our birch-aspen forests. I’ve never succeeded in transplanting one, but they sucker like mad and do their best to spread from the birch forest to the lawn.
Alaska Wild Rose
Buy Homecoming from iUniverse
'Homecoming' Blog 
I love love mint! I have it in my garden, too, along with several other herbs. An interesting one I found this year is pineapple sage. It really does have a pineapple smell to it!
Pineapple sage is a sage rather than a mint, but it’s one I get every year too.
Loved seeing all the different mints. I only have one kid and it’s going to be pulled up with a small portion going into a separate pot. It is so invasive! Do you actually use your mint? What for?
Yes, they’re invasive, but up here most don’t survive the winter. I plant them in a raised bed by themselves or in the holes in the concrete blocks. They’re good in salads, cold drinks, and with yogurt or cottage cheese.