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| Spear Mint in with my Papaya tree pot |
Conditions for growing mint
All of these tips are from my experiments on growing mint in Singapore
- Light - as much as possible.
- Water - you can't water it enough, the more you water, the more it will grow. Do ensure there are holes in the bottom of the pot.
- Fertilizer - you occasionally will need to fertilize the soil so that it keeps growing. We use home made worm tea but you can also purchase organic fertilizer from your local gardening center.
- Soil - it will grow in most soil. Either plant it in the ground, in its own pot or in a larger pot that contains another plant. We have ours growing in our big pots alongside our banana and papaya trees.
Top Tips for growing Mint
All of these tips are from my experiments on growing mint in Singapore
- Grow Cuttings - Every time you cut mint for use it, grow cuttings to start new plants. Do this by placing the stem with the top two tiny leaves left on, into water. Change water daily and it will grow roots within a week
- Don't allow straggly stems to grow - Bend any long straggly stems or cut them off and put them under soil. They will soon turn to roots and start growing more mint.
- Trim regularly - As the mint grows keep cutting it back as that will encourage growth.
- A deep pot - The deeper the pot, the bigger the leaves will grow. My biggest leaves are the ones in my huge pot with the banana tree.
- Fertilize weekly, water as often as possible. The more water and fertilizer it is given, the more it will grow.
- Lots of Sun- The more sun you give it the more it grows.
- Freeze leftover stems and mint and use later when making vegetable, chicken of fish stocks.
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| Attempting to use up my mint by making aromatherapy oil, it didnt work so well with olive oil |
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| On the left i just planted pepper mint with my Aloe Vera, there is also thyme |
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| Various types of mints |
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| Spearmint with my Banana tree |
Sustainability Tips
I originally bought lots of pots to grow my plants, but be more sustainable and creative by reusing things that you would usually throw away. Or explore your local area for materials that people are throwing away that you can use. The best pot to use are the polystyrene boxes that restarants and markets transport food in as they are deep and big. They can't be recycled so you are saving it from the landfill, and they do not rot. Just remember to put holes in it. You can also grow you plants in used food and drink containers.
