Plump with natural healing properties and refreshing aroma, mint completes every herb garden. In order for cultivation to be successful, a few fundamental aspects must be taken into account. The following instructions answer all questions about planting mint in a hobby garden.
How should you plant mint in the garden?
Mint should be planted in a partially shaded, protected location in nutrient-rich, moist soil. The recommended planting time is mid-May, with a planting distance of 50 centimeters. It can be propagated by sowing, cuttings or runners.
What method of cultivation is there?
In order to be able to plant strong young plants in beds or pots, experienced hobby gardeners grow mint indoors by sowing. In the first weeks of March, sow the fine seeds in lean, moist substrate. The light germinators are not covered with soil. In a partially shaded window seat at a temperature of around 20 degrees, you can look forward to the first seedlings after 10-14 days.
Which conditions at the location are advantageous?
Choose a semi-shady, protected location in the bed and on the balcony for mint. Blazing midday sun affects the lush growth just as much as pelting rain and cold drafts.
What should the soil and substrate be like?
If you grow mint in nutrient-rich, fresh, moist soil, it will happily extend its roots here. For planting in the pot, we recommend loose, airy herbal soil (€6.00 on Amazon), enriched with compost, horn shavings, perlite and sand. Good permeability of the substrate is essential, so commercial potting soil is unsuitable for growing mint.
When is it time to plant mint?
Regardless of their hardy constitution, young mints should not be confronted with frosty temperatures. The window for cultivation opens in mid-May, when the danger of delayed ground frosts has passed.
How does the planting go?
The self-grown or purchased young plants are placed with the still potted root ball in a container with water until no more air bubbles appear. The following steps continue:
- weed and rake the soil thoroughly
- Create planting pits with twice the volume of the root ball
- Optimize the excavation with sifted compost, horn shavings and sand
- Unpot the mint and plant it in the middle as deep as before
To give the young plants more stability, insert wooden sticks into the soil. Last but not least, pour generously. Growing mint in a pot is best done if you spread a drainage layer of pottery shards over the opening in the bottom and only then fill in the substrate.
At what distance should mint be planted?
Given a growth height of 60 to 90 centimeters and a sprawling habit, a planting distance of 50 centimeters is considered appropriate.
How to propagate mint?
Sowing, cuttings and runners are recommended for breeding. Cuttings have proven to be particularly practical because you can plant them directly in the bed.
Tips & Tricks
Mint provides a rich harvest of aromatic leaves throughout the season. Shortly before the flowering period begins in June, the leaves are particularly tasty. If you now cut back all the branches to a hand's width above the ground, you can look forward to another harvest season in late summer.
