Mint - No Need To Start From Seed

@Motomom34 was mentioning that she was having a hard time getting mint seeds to sprout....
Soooo....I did an experiment for her.

March 16


March 31


Conclusion:
Buy it fresh, cut the stem, stick it in dirt.
Done.
This can also be done with pineapple and kelory....i mean celery.

MG

 

@Mindgrinder thank you so much for testing this out. I am looking forward to doing this myself. I will get some root solution and plant. Hopefully I will have the results you had. Would love to start other herbs this way.

 

ALL 6 of the dirt clones rooted. 100% success, so just make sure it's as fresh as you can possibly get and I'm sure you'll pull it off flawlessly.

 

Mint is easy to grow from cuttings. I started with one plant I picked up a lowes, several years later we have mint growing like crazy. Oregano is another useful herb that is easy to start from cuttings and takes off like a rocket. Nothing like a mojito made from fresh mint, and the oregano is great in sauces. To start a new area with mint or oregano we take a shovel and cut a chunk out of the plant, replant and it is off to the races

 

You can just stick it in a glass of water too. Mint is practically an aquatic plant. I put two fresh, little cuttings in a 4'x4' bed on the aquaponics setup and it was all I could do to keep it from taking over by mid summer.

 

Mint is deer resistant. I am hoping this applies to elk also.

 

I did pretty good at starting Cat Nip (mint) from seed last year, and it has wintered well.

 

Best to keep mint in a planter or use deep edging around the garden section where it grows.
It does get out of control easily !

 

The next question is.... When does mint become a weed. [emoji15] =)

 

A better survival question for an "invasion" plant is...."can I eat it?"
Would you rather have poison ivy or mint?
As much as i hate the blackberries here.....I cant imagine why ANYONE would pay $4/quart when they are wild along every ditch in the province.
'Nuf said.

 

Lol so true... Which was my point. It's a weed if it takes over and is not useful...

 

A weed is anything that grows where you don't want it.

 

I went to 4 different places to find a fresh bundle of mint. No luck. I ended up having to buy a mint plant that said in small print, not intended for transplant? So I am going to break off some stems and try @Mindgrinder's experiment from them. It would be nice to have mint in a few different areas.

 

First mint plant I bought died. It was a strange one because it was not for transplanting and the leaves kept turning black. I just got a new plant and will be trying MG's experiment again. I use mint often so I would like to have a constant fresh source.

I am making cleaning solution- lemon mint scented. Then I also put lemon and mint in my water that I bring to work.

 

Cool cleaning solution! I'm going to have to try that.
If at first you don't succeed...try different soil.
I gave away a couple of the plants from that experiment but the 4 I have left have a perfect root ball now...close to root bound so i'll have to find them homes next weekend.
Terrible video:

 

Cat, beer, mint and tomatoes.. What next? Lol

 

Potatoes, onions, cucumber, lettuce, lettuce, lettuce, tomatoes xmany, peppers, 3 sisters mound corn/beans/melon....maybe more hydroponics...goji....moringa...not a @Gopherman "feed the entire neighborhood" awesome setup...but things to experiment with.

 

4 Well planted raised 12' beds would feed your family! We have 8 1/2 acres and apparently to much time on our hands .
Collards and other related greens are fast growing and will live through the winter as well.Sustainable harvesting and canning would give you plenty of greens to make it through the year.
I put way more time into it than I need to, only because I love to watch them grow! My wife and I do it together, labor of love!
We have really tried to change out eating habits lately and eat a lot more greens than we ever had before, we never heard of Collards or Kale before moving here.
We were blessed with this property, only paid 75k for the house and the land. Might as well put it to use!
When I'm working out there, I always think "We reap what we sow!" and just keep pluggin away.

 

As soon as you plant it in your yard! I planted a 6" pot of Chocolate Mint and it took over 100 square feet last year and 200 this year. other varieties not so much.