Hey guys! And welcome to another awesome post! Today I wanted to talk about proper plant care for growing mint outdoors. If properly taken care of, your mint plant will give you an endless supply of leaves all season long! Just follow these instructions to keep your plant not only healthy, but also keep it from overtaking all of your other plants!
**This post is geared towards growing mint outdoors. For information on indoor mint plant care, check out my post here!**
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Outdoor Mint Plant Care: Light Requirements
Mint plants can tolerate a wide range of sun conditions from full sun to part shade. Be aware, though, that if your plant is coming from a garden center or from a sales location that is indoors, it will need to be slowly acclimated to a full-sun position. Also keep in mind that any decorative mint plants (with variegated leaves) will need to receive more protection from the sun and will instead do best in a partly shaded area.
Outdoor Mint Plant Care: Water Requirements
Watering will vary with how much sun your plant is getting and how well-draining your soil is. If your plant is in full sun, it will need more water. Also, if your plant is in well- draining soil (such as in sandy soil) then it will also need more water. A good thing to do is to go out several times during the season and feel how moist or how dry your soil is. Then adjust accordingly. Mint normally likes to be kept moist, but not drowning in water.
Outdoor Mint Plant Care: Additional Requirements
Mint can be an invasive plant. You need to take precautions to keep this plant from spreading itself all across your yard. These two maintenance steps are easy to do and essential if you want to keep this plant under control. First, you need to keep the root system separated from your ground soil. The best way to do this is to grow it in a pot (either without drainage holes, or with the drainage holes placed away from any soil). You can also grow mint in a raised garden bed, but make sure to remove all of the roots after every season or to simply designate a mint area and make sure to cut or weed it to its designated area several times each summer. The second step is to remove all flowers before they set seed. Doing this will greatly reduce the spreading of your mint plant, and you will be able to enjoy your plant rather than constantly be in battle with it!
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Happy Digging!
What soil is the best for mint? Thank you.
Mint does well in any soil, as long as the soil retains enough moisture so that it doesn’t dry out too much between watering. In a pot, I would suggest a regular potting mix. I wouldn’t add any perlite or sand or it might dry out too quickly. If you’re in the ground (which I don’t suggest because it spreads like CRAZY!!!) then I would only add a layer of compost to the soil and only if the soil is drying out too much between watering. Let me know if you are confused in any way or if you have more questions! Thanks Felicitas!
I had always heard mint was invasive. Thanks for the info on how to grow mint outdoors “safely”