Is all mint invasive?

Hi -

I live in Zone 4. I'm wondering if there are any species of mint that would not be invasive in my zone?

I'm going to cross-post this in the invasive plants forum as well.

Sarah

I don't claim to be an expert, but I've not found any varieties of mint that are not invasive. Planting in pots seems to be the best way to go.

The only effective way I have ever found to contain mint is to plant it in a hanging basket

Hanging basket, seriously. Kentucky Colonel and Apple Mint escaped pots and now happily invade my flower beds and garden path.

Not all mints are invasive but it would take researching to see what will or won't grow in your area.

In this area a native mint that spreads only by seed not root system is Mountain mint or Pycnanthemum tenuifolium.

It grows in bush form and is a small leaf mint that makes a good tea. The small leaf form does well in heat and humidity.

I have that as well, it's not invasive, but also not truly a mint. Lovely bee plant, though.

Yes... I know it is not one of the Menthas but it is in the same family. And the taste is equally good... 8 )

It is...and it dries so well, and stays fragrant. I love it.

I have given my mints a difficult area to colonize as they will -- east side of the barn with gravel driveway abutting it. They must fight through the gravel with not much (if any) watering other than rainwater. Our normal vehicle traffic keeps them from encroaching too far into the driveway proper. This combo seems to keep them in control and gives a nice casual look to the side of the barn. I have apple mint, spearmint, a struggling chocolate mint, and a few others I will need to ID as they establish themselves (gifts fom fellow gardeners).

Hey, what a cool idea! You could use mints as "stepable plants" in a path. They'd probably survive and what a nice scent when you walk the path! I also planted mint in clay pots and sunk them into my herb garden. Didn't think of the runners rooting :0 I guess I'll let them spread a bit but keep trimming so they stay under control.

I've been told that many, if not all, of the plants in the mint family are invasive. A hanging basket is a great idea (never thought of that!) but if you have to stick with a regular container then make sure to put it on cement, a deck or even on a decent size stepping stone. Mine was escaping out the container holes but so far I think I prevented any real rooting.

Also, funny but my catmint (not catnip) was rooting onto our carpet on the porch. I'm waiting to see if any grows. I can't say I'd be upset with plants for a porch carpet.

I've not found any that aren't invasive, although some less difficult to get rid of because of smaller leaves/thinner stems.

Also my lemon balm has gone crazy and is about three feet by three feet and does not look like it can be stopped. Fortunately it is covering up some area that I don't have anything to put in at the moment and it is scrupulously tidy looking.

My catmint (gorgeous in this its third year, alive with buzzing bees and small butterflies. This will be the fall that it along with the lemonbalm will need dividing. I love when I talk like this, like I'm actually going to get out there in the fall and do all these things.

Meanwhile the brown bags of bulbs orderd for planting last October have nothing but a couple of skimpy dried out pebble-like things that are no longer viable. Forgive me dear little harbingers of spring who will never see the sun of early April.

Please pay no attention to me. I am just in a snit becase I bought a trough that is so heavy when filled with soil that it can only be moved with casters attached on the bottom. The casters have not yet arrived, meanwhile $200 worth of potted plants grow to twice their size waiting to be plumped into the expensive potting soil piling up against the garage wall.

I'm giving Fed Ex one more day to get here and then I'm planting the thing anyway and taking my chances that I won't have to move it ever ever.'

I will take a picture of it and post it here, if I can find my Canon DX software.

Catnip, catswort, & catmint are all the same thing. They are Nepeta cataria in the Lamiaceae family.

I read that Kentucky Colonel spearmint is not as likely to choke out other plants but still a prolific spreader. I'm going to try some in a shady area and see how it goes.

my kentucky colonel is spreading despite me digging it up, and grass overgrowing it. Not sure if i missed a piece or whether it came up from the roots, but it's still spreading like any other spearmint.

I've attempted to move everything into pots though, where they are growing happily.

This message was edited May 23, 2011 8:25 PM

My Kentucky Colonel spreads everywhere, but it would have to be a pretty dainty flower or small seedling for it to get choked out. In 10 years, it hasn't choked out asters, coneflowers, sedums, catmint, or ornamental oreganos, but they're all pretty vigorous.

This was probably taken 3 years ago; my little birdbath garden is now completely choked with mint, though there are 2 roses that can still be discerned. It makes a lovely little place and the bees adore it. Those concrete barrier things do a fair job, but more and more when I mow the grass around it, the air is filled with the smell of peppermint! I would not mind a bit if the mint choked out the grass. I hate San Augustine grass. And I love peppermint.

My lemon balm is a little monstrous as well, Pamgarden. But I figure if that's my worst gardening problem, I'm doing all right. I've also found stevia to be pretty invasive.

And this is the picture I meant to attach.

I love the hanging basket idea for mint. I read here on DG about that early last year. I had some ginger mint I was afraid to plant, so put it in a hanging basket. It was really pretty and now I am doing it again this year.

I planted mint about a foot away from some lemon balm down here in zone 10 a. They were getting partial shade (really full shade, once the sunflowers started growing two feet away from them) for awhile, but now that the sunflowers are spent and cut down, they're pretty much in full southern sun until 4 p.m. when they get a bit of shade.

did notice, though, that the sweet mint has started to choke out the lemon balm (assuming it's the mint, but could be i'm overwatering - the leaves start green, then are yellowing with brownish/purple on edges and undersides of leaves), and it's overgrown the corner of the bed we planted it in.

I realize I'll have to pull both herbs up out of the raised bed they're in now, but what kind of containers should I put them in? I've read a lot about plants drowning in containers because of the perched water table.

I would LOVE to plant a walkway with mint and lemon balm between the stones, but afraid that it'd take over entire yard and into neighbors' yards as well (especially here in florida).

So, need suggestions:

a - Which containers best suited for herbs in south florida?
b - Sun requirements for such herbs in this heat?
c - Mentioned they attract bees, but never saw flowers - how do they attract?
d - How do I create a spectacular smelling walk-way without endangering my yard and rest of neighborhood?
e - Which types (cultivars?) of herbs are best for containers and walkways?
f - (MOST IMPORTANT) Which herbs act as insect repellents to save my veggies?


Thank you so very much.

Have a nice evening.

You might try creeping pennyroyal in your walkway. It has a strong minty scent and seems quite tough. Stays low to the ground.

So far, I haven't found any mints that are not aggressive -- as long as they find growing conditions favorable where they're planted. I had some spearmint and peppermint planted in a shady area and the peppermint just about died out. I planted the last of it on the other side of the house and now it's everywhere!

For the person who asked about herbs to protect veggie plants -- there might be some, but the one I planted for that reason was coriander/cilantro and it simply doesn't protect anything so far as I can see. What it does do is re-seed itself all over the place. Some of it is still coming up despite the fact that I covered the whole garden area with cardboard and a few inches of shredded leaves (and, unfortunately, none of my family can stand the taste of cilantro.)