Mint is one herb I won’t live without. I enjoy the occasional mojito, but my favorite way to enjoy mint is as an herbal tea. I use dried mint leaves to brew both hot and iced tea, and in the summer I make a weekly batch of sun tea with the fresh leaves. Since mint is notorious for its rampant growth (it can quickly take over the garden), I grow my mint in patio containers. I also grow mint year-round indoors. This means I have fresh mint leaves to harvest 12 months of the year. Today, I’d like to share information on how to grow mint indoors using three different techniques.
Why grow mint indoors
Mint (Mentha species) is a perennial that produces new foliage all year long if the stems are not killed by frost, making it one of the easiest herbs to grow inside. There are hundreds of different species, hybrids, and cultivars of mint. Some are more common than others when it comes to their flavor and popularity. Unlike many other herbs, mint is very easy to grow indoors, as long as you give the plant enough light and consistent moisture (more on both of these in a later section). Mint also makes a surprisingly beautiful houseplant. I love mint’s crinkly green leaves and how the stems of some varieties tumble down over the sides of the pot. I’ve even had mint plants bloom indoors in the dead of winter.
Yes, mint is attractive, but most of us don’t grow herbs for their good looks. We grow them for their flavors, and what could be better than snipping your own fresh, homegrown mint leaves to make a cup of hot tea on a cold day? Since mint is constantly making new stems and leaves, you’ll always have a few sprigs ready for harvest.