NATURALIZED MINTS
Jump to Page Navigation buttons===>Peppermint (Mentha Piperita) is a mint from Britain
that, like the others, was brought over by colonists -- an
immigrant like themselves -- for its usefulness in cooking
(and medical virtues it was believed to have). Like the
other mints here, it escaped, found all sorts of conditions
where it could flourish, and is now a welcome weed that
likes sun and tends to grow tall and rangy. It has a tangy,
minty flavor, that will be familiar from its use in
peppermint candy. (Synthetics mimic it now.) It escaped,
through seed and through the ease with which it forms
roots from cut stems, and is now a wild plant,
"naturalized" all over the U.S. and much of Canada.Left is Spearmint or Mentha viridis an
immigrant that (together with chicle)
made the fortune of a man named
Wriggley. It's the taste of chewing gum
and toothpaste, still.Right is Pennyroyal or Mentha
pulegium. It grows about a foot high. For
European women, Pennyroyal has long
been a women's herb taken in teas for
menstruation and childbirth ease. As a
candy, its strong flavor is not as popular
as peppermint, but as a cooking herb it is
excellent.Native Foods -- Mints, naturalized
http://www.kstrom.net/isk/food/mint2.html (1 of 3) [5/17/2004 11:47:58 AM]