Mentha spicata

Garden or common mint, Mentha spicata, is perhaps the most widely grown mint for general kitchen use, its young bright green shoot tips ready just in time for the first peas and early potatoes in June. Like all mints, it's a vigorous and very hardy perennial, spreading widely by underground runners, which are easily restrained by growing plants in containers.

For best results grow Mentha spicata in rich, moist but well-drained soil in full sun. Mulch annually with well-rotted compost. Plants can be cut back hard just before flowering, and leaves can be frozen for use in winter. In milder regions, leaves should regrow in time for a second harvest.