Refreshing mint has so many uses and qualities, and it deserves a place in every garden. Mint is medicinal, culinary, and ornamental. Even better, it’s a pollinator favorite in the garden. The problem is that mint usually forgets its place. Literally.
History and Uses
Greek mythology tells the tale of the nymph known as Minthe, proud mistress to Hades, Lord of the Dead. Hades’ wife, Persephone, hearing of Minthe’s boastings of his favors, cursed her, transforming her into a lowly herb growing in spring-fed meadows beside the Gates of the Underworld. To this day, mint still grows in the open streamside, sweet, seductive, and forever reaching beyond its station.
On a more practical vein, mint has the distinction of being one of humanity’s earliest and most prized herbs. Its name appears in the most ancient medicinal writings, both Egyptian and Asian. Ancient burial preparations called for fragrant bunches of mint, in part for mint’s air-freshening properties. Later, churches and temples took to strewing fresh mint stems over their floors, where footsteps of the faithful would release aromatic oils, helping to mask the odors of unwashed bodies.
Medicinally, mint has been used as a digestive aid (after-dinner
