Mentha spicataSpearmintPerennial herb with aromatic, flavorful...

Mentha spicata

Spearmint

Perennial herb with aromatic, flavorful leaves

If your only encounter with mint has been in the form of ice cream, candy or the creme de menthe liqueur, fresh mint will be a revelation. Clean, fresh--yes, even minty --it is all the words applied to toothpaste and then some. One of few herbs associated with candy and dessert, spearmint also is important in Thai cuisine, where it is stir-fried to bring out its spicy heat.

Spearmint’s pretty, dark-green leaves--deeply textured with serrated edges--grow on upright stems with purplish flowers. The plants spread by underground stems, and therein lies mint’s bad reputation: It will take over. Not just the herb garden, but the entire garden. It will run rampant over flowers and bushes, invade grass, tunnel under sidewalks and appear--surprise--in the neighbor’s yard. One cannot overestimate its sheer chutzpah.

The accepted form of control is simple: Plant mint in a pot in the ground, containing the roots so they won’t go adventuring. Be sure that at least an inch of the pot sticks up over the soil; any closer than that and the mint will very likely fling a root or stem over the edge of the pot and you’re back to anarchy.

Don’t be confused by the many kinds of mints at the local nursery: spearmint, apple, English, orange, peppermint, pineapple mint and the most confusing, Mint the Best. Mint the Best is a spearmint variation, with smaller leaves and sweeter flavor.

Check the botanical name (when it’s available). If it’s Mentha spicata, it is a form of spearmint and can be used in jellies, teas, fruit salads and drinks. (Of course, all the other mints can be used the same way; you won’t get the distinctive spearmint flavor, but there will be interesting variations.)

Like so many herbs, mint is remarkably drought-tolerant; I had it interplanted with oregano and rosemary (that is, the mint decided it would grow there and I was powerless to stop it); that part of my garden received very little moisture and still grew like Topsy.

For best results, though, mint should have weekly water and some shade during the day in Southern California’s hotter areas; if planted in full sun with little water, it gets rangy and unattractive. Still tastes delicious, though.

Spearmint is widely available in the herb sections of Southern California nurseries and from Taylor’s Herb Gardens, 1535 Lone Oak Road, Vista, Calif. 92084 (catalogue $1).