How to Grow Mint from Seed to Harvest

Mint (Mentha viridis L.) is a medicinal plant belonging to the mint ‘Labiati’ family. Its leaves are mostly used as a spice for flavoring dishes, in the preparation of various pickles, and as a salad. This plant grows up to 40 cm in height. The leaves are rounded or broadly ovate, deeply wrinkled, thick, and dark green in color. Cutting too quickly usually results in a poor flowering. Small in size, but the aromatic substance ‘carvone’ gives the taste.

Most of this “Menthol” aromatic oil is derived from this plant mostly for green leaves and the fragrance, the oil extracted from the stems of the special mint leaves is called ‘Menthol’. Menthol is widely used in the preparation of various medicines, shaving and toothpastes. The percentage of menthol oil is 0.3-0.8% in leaves and 0.1% in stems. However, the mint species cultivated for this menthol oil are different.

In this article I have explained How to Mint from Seed to Harvest, which helps every farmer and home gardener to gain the knowledge on

Available verities of Mint.
Seed germination time.
Suitable soil and weather conditions.
Field preparation and planting distance.
Fertilizer and Water Management.
Required seed per acre and expected yield per acre.

Mint called with different names in other Indian languages: Mentha, mint, Pudina

There are four main types.

Japanese Mint – Mint arvensis variety
Pipersense Peppermint – Mint piperata
Spearmint – Mint spicata
Bergamot Mint Citrata

Of these, only varieties identified and released for oil should be cultivated.

Weather:

Mint grows in all seasons. Leaf growth is good if the temperature is 20-25° centigrade. But for oil, high cold regions are suitable for cultivation. If the temperature is above 30°C, the percentage of oil increases.

Soils:

Fertile, light sandy soils with high organic matter and well drained light alluvial soils are suitable. Waterlogged black clay soils are not suitable.

Seed:

Mint can be cultivated by grafting stem cuttings. Stem cuttings (stolons, suckers, runners) 4-5 cm long with two or three nodes should be selected.

Planting method:

30 or 45 cm distance between rows, 10 cm distance between two plants in a row, 1-2 cm deep, except one node should be planted properly in the ground.

Time of Planting:

For vegetable it can be planted throughout the year but for oil it should be planted between November 15 and December 15. Otherwise oil yield will decrease.

Water Management:

Mint roots stay mostly in the soil. So you have to give light slaps immediately. Watering should be given every 8-12 days in winter and 3-4 days in summer depending on the nature of the soil.

Harvesting:

The first harvest comes three months after planting. In the first cutting, Plant pruning should be done four to five cm. The second cutting (i.e. after a month) should be done close to the ground.