Mint, Mojito

Mojito mint has the perfect spearmint flavor for cocktails, with leaves that are more tender and less menthol-heavy than regular mint. This vigorous perennial will take over if you let it, so grow it in containers or where it can spread freely.

Mint: Mint (Mentha spp.) is the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of herbs: vigorously perennial, intensely aromatic, and wonderfully useful for beverages, cuisine, and aromatherapy, but aggressively spreading if not contained. Multiple species offer a range of delicious flavors including classic peppermint, spearmint, chocolate, pineapple, and orange. Identification is easy thanks to the characteristic square stems and menthol aroma. To prevent a takeover, plant this herb in containers or use root barriers.

• Growing Tips: Transplant anytime during the growing season, spacing 12-18 inches apart if ground-planted, but preferably using containers or buried barriers to control its extremely vigorous spread.

• Sun Requirements: Full sun to partial shade.

• Preferred Soil: Rich, moist soil; tolerates wet conditions better than most herbs.

• Harvest Details: Cut stems regularly for fresh use (which also controls growth); harvest before flowering for the strongest flavor; plants die back in winter but return vigorously in spring; perennial in zones 3-11.