203 



N. Ord. LABIATE. 

 Tribe Satureiete . 

 Genus Mentha. 



203. Mentha piperita, Smith in Trans. Linn. Soc., vol. V (1800) 

 p. 189. (non Linn.) 



Peppermint. 



i. M. officinalis and M. hircina, Hull. M. piperita, var. offieinalis, 

 Koch. M. viridi-aquatica, F. Schultz. 



Figures. Woodv., 1. 120 ; Steph. & Oh., t. 45 ; Nees, t. 163 ? ; Hayne, xi, 

 t. 37; Berg & Sch., t. 23 c; Sole, Brit. Mints, tt. 7 and 8; Syme, 

 E. Bot, vii, 1. 1024, 1025. 



Description. A perennial herb, with a rootstock which gives 

 off long -Suckers. Stems erect or nearly so, 3 4 feet high, 

 square, smooth or slightly hairy, green or purplish, branched at 

 the base ; branches long, spreading. Leaves all stalked ; petioles 

 of the lower ones \ an inch or more long, of the upper shorter ; 

 leaves dark dull green above, paler and covered with minute 

 glands beneath, smooth or nearly so, lanceolate, oval or ovate, 

 varying in width, sharply serrate, the base narrowed or rounded, 

 the apex acute. Inflorescence composed of several whorls, forming 

 a terminal, loose, conical spike, the whorls separated below ; lower 

 bracts leaf -like, apex of spike pointed or rounded ; flowers shortly 

 stalked ; pedicels smooth, purplish, glandular ; bracteoles lanceo- 

 late, acuminate, slightly fringed. Calyx cylindrical, campanu- 

 late, glabrous, dotted with glands, purple ; the teeth triangular, 

 cuspidate, half as long as the tube, ciliate. Corolla about twice as 

 long as calyx, pale purplish red, glabrous inside and out, upper 

 lip emarginate. Stamens 4, filaments short, equal, included. 

 Style exserted, bifid at its extremity. Achenes smooth or 

 rugose. 



Peppermint is readily recognised from spearmint by its 

 uniformly stalked leaves, thicker and more crowded inflorescence, 

 larger flowers, and shorter calyx-teeth, as well as by the familiar 

 warm pungent odour and taste. It presents two forms, distin- 



