348 



Mint Growing. 



[august, 



MINT GROWING FOR THE ESSENTIAL OIL. 

 Gordon H. Grellier, P.A.S.I. 



Two varieties of mint, known respectively as black and 

 white mint, are grown in England for the production of the 

 essential oil, but the area under cultivation is very limited 

 and it is believed that it may not exceed 1,000 acres, whilst 

 some authorities estimate that half that area would represent 

 the total quantity that is grown in this country. 



White mint was cultivated for many years before the black 

 variety, which produces nearly double the quantity of oil, 

 was introduced, and at the present time only a small quantity 

 of white mint is cultivated to supply the demands of a few 

 old firms of druggists. Black mint, so called from its dark 

 green foliage, was first commercially used about 45 years ago, 

 and it has now almost superseded the other kind, which has a 

 leaf more lanceolate and serrated and of a lighter colour. 



Black mint seldom flowers except in hot and dry seasons, 

 and it has not been seen in full flower since 1893, when the 

 summer was hot and dry. White mint differs in this respect, 

 it comes earlier and flowers every summer, and when in full 

 bloom, land planted with it has a somewhat similar appearance 

 to a field of lavender. The flowers in both cases are of a blue 

 colour. 



Mint is said to grow best on land that is not more than 

 200 feet above sea level, and its cultivation is chiefly confined 

 to the district in and about Ewell, Cheam, Carshalton and 

 Mitcham, but it is also grown in the neighbourhood of Burgess 

 Hill in Sussex, as well as at Ashford and Orpington in Kent, 

 and Hit chin in Hertfordshire. It has also been grown in 

 Lincolnshire. 



Mint is cultivated in Japan and also in the United States, 

 particularly in Michigan. Growers in the United States, 

 although the quality of their oil is inferior, by sending their 

 produce to English markets have in some measure undersold 

 the home producers. 



Cultivation. — Mint is a deep rooted plant with underground 

 stems or runners and it can only be grown profitably on certain 

 soils. It requires a good, light, warm soil, that which suits it 

 best being a deep rich loam on gravel, but it will thrive well 



