Growing Spearamint

Germinating spearamint, late March

I attempted to grow some spearamint from seed. The seeds are these teeny tiny round things that are so small that you can't help but accidentally plant about 20 of them.


Germinating spearamint, closeup


June 12

This plant is not exactly growing quickly. At this rate, I will never be able to use it for anything.

When I looked at plants at the farmers market today, I noticed that they looked much bushier than the plants I am growing. I realized that obviously more than one seedling had been allowed to grow in the same container. I thought that I was only supposed to keep one in each container, which is what I did with the basil, sage, etc. I'm not doing that with the mint and we'll see how things turn out. Mint seeds are so tiny that it's very difficult to plant just a few. It seems like there are 30 seedlings in here, but I don't think I planted that many seeds. Some of the seedlings are stronger than others.


June 19.



November 8.

At this point I think it's safe to say that this experiment has not been successful. The plants have grown, but at an extremely slow pace. They still are not full size or anywhere near it, and they aren't very green. Some of the leaves are very pale and have brown spots. The most likely culprit is a lack of sunlight. When I pick up a packet of herbs at the grocery store, I always wonder why I bother. It seems to much easier, and a much greater quantity than I can use costs only a dollar at the co-op.