Mints

Mints
	Spearmint , curled mint or curled forest mint ( Mentha spicata L.) (Syn .: Mentha spicata var. Crispa ), illustration
Systematics
Order :	Mint family (Lamiales)
Family :	Mint family (Lamiaceae)
Subfamily :	Nepetoideae
Tribe :	Mentheae
Sub tribus :	Menthinae
Genre :	Mints
Scientific name
	Mentha
	L.

The mints ( Mentha ) are a genus of plants from the family of the lip flower family (Lamiaceae). Most of the 20 to over 30 species, depending on the source, are native to the temperate areas of the northern hemisphere ; only a few species occur in the southern hemisphere (Australia and Africa). All mint species mostly thrive in damp locations.

etymology

The West Germanic plant name mint (Middle High German mint , Old High German minza , English mint ) is based on a borrowing from the Latin word menta . This word in turn is brought into connection with the Greek nymph Minthe .

description

Mint species are aromatic and perennial herbaceous plants with underground runners or rhizomes . They usually have simple or branched hair ( trichomes ). The upright to creeping stems can be branched. The opposite leaves are simple and usually have a serrated or serrated edge. A petiole may be present.

Polei Mint ( Mentha pulegium )

Peppermint ( Mentha × piperita ), illustration from Koehler 1887

The flowers are in many-flowered predominantly Scheinquirlen arranged, the broken sham ears with leafy bracts or dense appearance with small ears bracts form. The medium-sized flowers are hermaphroditic to functionally unisexual and zygomorphic with a double perianth . Functionally unisexual flowers are common in many species; especially male-sterile flowers occur in up to 40% or even more individuals of a population. The five unequal sepals are fused tubular to bell-shaped. The five predominantly whitish to pink petals are fused and only weakly two-lipped. The upper lip is usually the size of one of the three lobes of the lower lip. As a result, the flower almost regularly appears to have four columns. There are only four unequal stamens that protrude clearly from the corolla tube. The two carpels are a top permanent ovary fused; it is divided into four chambers by false partitions; each of the four chambers contains only one ovule . The stylus protruding from the corolla tube ends with two branches. In some species the flowers are vormännlich ( proterandry ).

The Klausen fruit breaks down into four small Klausen, which are egg-shaped to spherical with a smooth or clearly net-like surface.

ecology

Pollination is mostly done by short-nosed insects such as flies. The seeds spread through the water ( hydrochory ).

Systematics and distribution

Most species are native to the temperate areas of the northern hemisphere in both Eurasia and North America; only a few species occur in the southern hemisphere in Australia and in the Capensis . Some species or cultures are invasive plants around the world .

The genus name Mentha was first classified by Carl von Linné in Species Plantarum in 1753 . Synonyms for Mentha L. are: Preslia Opiz and Pulegium Mill.

Water mint ( Mentha aquatica )

Field mint ( Mentha arvensis )

Deer Mint ( Mentha cervina )

Ross mint ( Mentha longifolia )

Corsican mint ( Mentha requienii )

Round-leaved mint ( Mentha suaveolens )

The differentiation of the species is difficult because they tend to form natural hybrids ( hybrids ). This leads to an abundance of synonyms that are often found in botanical and horticultural literature. There are around 25 to 30 recognized species:

Mentha alaica Boriss. : The home is Central Asia .

Water mint ( Mentha aquatica L. , Syn .: among many others Mentha acuta Opiz , Mentha acutata Opiz , Mentha palustris Mill. ): It is native to Europe , Macaronesia , Africa and Western Asia to Siberia .

Field mint ( Mentha arvensis L. , Syn .: Mentha austriaca Jacq. , Mentha gentilis L. et al.): It occurs in a circumpolar manner in the temperate zones of North America and Eurasia and with Malesia in tropical Asia . It is at home from Europe to Kamchatka and Nepal.

Mentha asiatica Boriss. (Syn .: Mentha longifolia var. Asiatica ( Boriss. ) Rech. F. ): The home is in Western Asia, southern Siberia , Central Asia, northern India and northwestern China .

Mentha atrolilacina B.J.Conn & DJDuval : It was first described in 2010 from southern Australia.

Mentha australis R.Br. (Syn .: Micromeria australis Benth. ): The home is in Australia .

Mentha canadensis L. (Syn .: Mentha arvensis f. Glabrata ( Fernald) SRStewart , Mentha arvensis f. Piperascens Malinv. Ex Holmes , Mentha arvensis var. Glabrata Fernald , Mentha arvensis var. Piperascens Malinv. Ex LHBailey , Mentha haplocalyx Briq. , Mentha haplocalyx Briq. , Mentha pedunculata Hu & Tsai , Mentha sachalinensis ( Briq. ) Kudô , Mentha terebinthinacea Willd. Ex Steud. ): The home is in North America and from central and eastern Siberia to China and Japan.

Deer mint ( Mentha cervina L. , Syn .: Mentha multifida Stokes , Mentha punctata Moench. , Preslia cervina ( L. ) Fresen. , Preslia glabriflora Opiz , Preslia villiflora Opiz and Pulegium cervinum ( L. ) Mill. ): It is native to France , Spain , Portugal , Morocco , Algeria and the Azores .

Mentha cordifolia Opiz (is used by other sources as a synonym for Mentha × villosa Huds. )

Mentha cunninghamii Benth. (Syn .: Mentha consimils Colenso , Micromeria cunninghamii Benth. ): The home is New Zealand and the Chatham Islands.

Mentha dahurica fish. ex Benth. (Syn .: Calamintha ussuriensis Regel & Maack , Mentha origanoides Maxim. Ex Trautv. (Invalid for formal reasons)): It is in the southern and eastern Siberia, in the southern part of the Russian Far East , in the northeast Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang , Jilin , Liaoning , Nei Mongol and common in Japan .

Mentha darvasica Boriss. : The homeland is Tajikistan .

Mentha diemenica Spreng. : The home is southern and eastern Australia.

Mentha gattefossei Maire : The homeland is Morocco.

Mentha grandiflora Benth. : The home is in the Australian state of Queensland .

Mentha haplocalyx Briq. (is used in other sources as a synonym for Mentha canadensis L. )

Mentha insularis Req. (In other sources it is also used as a synonym for Mentha requienii Benth. or Mentha suaveolens subsp. suaveolens ): The home is the Mediterranean islands of Sicily , Sardinia , Corsica and the Balearic Islands .

Mentha japonica ( Miq. ) Makino (Syn .: Micromeria japonica Miq. ): The home is the Japanese islands of Hokkaidō and Honshū .

Mentha laxiflora Benth. : The home is in the southeastern Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria .

Ross mint or long-leaved mint ( Mentha longifolia ( L. ) Huds. , Syn .: Mentha sylvestris L. ): It is widespread in Eurasia, Macaronesia and Africa. Various authors name subspecies and varieties, but whether they are currently accepted is unclear, the WCSP database from 2003 gives the following impression:

Mentha longifolia var. Amphilema Briq. ex Rech. f. : It occurs in West Asia.
Mentha longifolia var. asiatica (Boriss.) Rech. F. (Syn .: Mentha asiatica Boriss. , Mentha kopetdaghensis Boriss. , Mentha vagans Boriss. ): It occurs from western Asia to western China. It has the status of a kind with other authors.
Mentha longifolia var. Austroafghanica Rech. F. : It occurs in Afghanistan.
Mentha longifolia subsp. capensis (Thunb.) Briq. : Occurs from Zimbabwe to southern Africa.
Mentha longifolia var. Chlorodictya Rech. F. : It occurs from the Caucasus to West and Central Asia.
Mentha longifolia var. Kermamensis Rech. F. : It occurs in Iran.
Mentha longifolia var. Kotschyana (Boiss.) Briq. : It occurs in eastern Turkey and Iran.
Mentha longifolia subsp. longifolia : Found in Macaronesia, Europe, the Himalayas and tropical Africa.
Mentha longifolia var. Muqarrabica Shinwari & Chaudhri : It occurs in Pakistan.
Mentha longifolia subsp. noeana (Briq.) Briq. : It occurs in Turkey.
Mentha longifolia var. Petiolata Boiss. : It occurs from northern Iraq to northern and western Iran.
Mentha longifolia var. Schimperi (Briq.) Briq. : It occurs from the Sinai Peninsula to the Arabian Peninsula.
Mentha longifolia var. Swatica Shinwari & Chaudhri : It occurs in Pakistan.
Mentha longifolia subsp. typhoides (Briq.) Harley : Occurs from the eastern Mediterranean region to Iran.
Mentha longifolia subsp. wissii (Launert) Codd : Occurs in Namibia and South Africa.

Mentha micrantha ( Benth. ) Des.-Shost. (Syn .: Mentha pulegium var. Micrantha Benth. ): Is distributed in southeastern, European Russia , the northern Caucasus region and northwestern Kazakhstan .

Mentha pamiroalaica Boriss. : The home is in Central Asia.

Polei mint ( Mentha pulegium L. , Syn .: Mentha albarracinensis Pau , Mentha aromatica Salisb. , Mentha aucheri Pérard , Mentha daghestanica Boriss. , Mentha erinoides Heldr. , Mentha exigua L. , Mentha gibraltarica Willd. , Mentha subtomentella Heinr.Braun , Pulegium vulgare Mill. And others): Is widespread in Europe, North Africa , Western Asia, Russia, Central Asia, Pakistan and China.

Corsican mint ( Mentha requienii Benth. , Syn .: Audibertia parviflora ( Req. ) Nyman , Audibertia pusilla Benth. , Menthella obovata Gand. , Menthella requienii ( Benth. ) Pérard , Pulegium parviflorum ( Req. ) Samp. , Thymus corsicus Moris ( a formally invalid name), Thymus parviflorus Req. and sometimes Mentha insularis ): The homeland is Corsica , Sardinia and the Italian island of Montecristo .

Mentha royleana Wall. ex Benth. (is also used as a synonym for Mentha longifolia subsp. hymalaiensis Briq .; Syn .: Mentha afghanica Murata , Mentha royleana var. afghanica ( Murata ) Rech.f. ): It is distributed from Afghanistan to the western Himalayas. One can distinguish five varieties.

Mentha sachalinensis ( Briq. Ex Miyabe & Miyake ) Kudô (is also used by other sources as a synonym for Mentha canadensis L. ): It iswidespreadin Japan, Russia and in the Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang , Jilin , Liaoning , Nei Mongol .

Mentha satureioides R.Br. : The home is southern and eastern Australia.

Spearmint , ears of corn mint or forest-mint ( Mentha spicata L. , syn .: Mentha aquatica var. Crispa ( L. ) Benth. , Mentha cordifolia Opiz ex Fresen. , Mentha crispa L. , Mentha crispata Schrad. , Mentha lejeuneana Opiz , Mentha pudina Buch.-Ham. Ex Benth. , Mentha rosanii Ten. , Mentha crispa L. , Mentha spicata var. Ciliata Druce , Mentha spicata var. Crispa ( Benth. ) Danert , Mentha spicata var. Viridis L. , Mentha undulata . Willd , Mentha x villosa var. cordifolia ( Opiz ex . Fresen ) Lebeau , Mentha viridis ( L. ) L. ): Means, used in Europe, North Africa, Middle East, the Caucasus region in the central Asian Turkmenistan in Pakistan, Nepal and China . With two subspecies:

Mentha spicata subsp. condensata (Briq.) Greuter & Burdet : It occurs in the Mediterranean area.
Mentha spicata subsp. spicata : It occurs from Europe to China.

Round-leaved mint or fragrant mint ( Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. , Syn .: Mentha macrostachya Ten. , Mentha meduanensis Déségl. & T.Durand , Mentha rotundifolia auct.): It is found in Europe, Macaronesia, North Africa, Turkey and China .

Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. subsp. suaveolens (Syn .: Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. subsp. insularis ( Req. ) Greuter , Mentha insularis Req. ): It occurs in Macaronesia, in Europe and in the Mediterranean region.
Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. subsp. timija ( Briq. ) Harley (Syn .: Mentha timija Briq. ): The homeland is Morocco.

Mentha ucrainica Klokov : Ukraine is my home.

Natural hybrids

Carinthian mint ( Mentha × carinthiaca host = Mentha arvensis × Mentha suaveolens ): The home is in Hungary, France and Spain. In the Belgian-Luxembourg region, the hybrid is considered extinct.

Dalmatian mint ( Mentha × dalmatica exchange = Mentha arvensis × Mentha longifolia )

Bush mint ( Mentha × dumetorum Schult. = Mentha aquatica × Mentha longifolia )

Fine mint , brown mint, noodle mint or birch-leaved ginger-mint ( Mentha × gracilis Sole = Mentha arvensis × Mentha spicata , syn .: Mentha × cardiaca J. Gerard ex Baker , Mentha × gentilis auct.)

Mentha × kuemmerlei Trautm. (Syn .: Mentha × tutinii P.Silva ) = Mentha aquatica × Mentha spicata × Mentha suaveolens : The homeland is Hungary.

Mentha × locyana Borbás = Mentha longifolia × Mentha verticillata : The homeland is Hungary.

Mentha × maximilianea F.W.Schultz = Mentha aquatica × Mentha suaveolens (Syn .: Mentha suavis Guss. )

Mentha × muelleriana F.W.Schultz = Mentha arvensis × Mentha suaveolens (Syn .: Mentha carinthiaca auct.)

Peppermint ( Mentha × piperita L. = Mentha aquatica × Mentha spicata , Syn .: Mentha lavanduliodora ined.):

Mentha × piperita nothosubsp. citrata ( honor. ) Briq. (Syn .: Mentha citrata Ehrh. , Mentha x piperita var. Citrata ( Ehrh. ) Briq. )
Mentha × piperita nothosubsp. piperita = Mentha aquatica × Mentha spicata subsp. spicata
Mentha × piperita nothosubsp. pyramidalis ( Ten. ) Harley = Mentha aquatica × Mentha spicata subsp. tomentosa (Syn .: Mentha pyramidalis Ten. )

Nile mint , bastard horse mint ( Mentha × rotundifolia ( L. ) Huds. = Mentha longifolia × Mentha suaveolens (non Mentha rotundifolia auct. = Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. ), Syn .: Mentha niliaca Juss. Ex Jacq. , Mentha spicata var . rotundifolia L. )

Red mint ( Mentha × smithiana R.A.Graham = Mentha aquatica × Mentha arvensis × Mentha spicata )

Whorl mint , whorl mint ( Mentha × verticillata L. = Mentha arvensis × Mentha aquatica )

Grove mint ( Mentha × villosa Huds. = Mentha spicata × Mentha suaveolens (Syn .: Mentha nemorosa Willd. , Mentha niliaca auct. Nonn.))

Hemingway-mint , Hain-mint or Shaggy mint ( Mentha x villosa nothovar. Alopecuroides ( Hull ) Briq. , Syn .: Mentha alopecuroides Hull )

Bastard green mint, toothed mint ( Mentha × villosa-nervata Opiz , syn. Mentha viridis var. Villosa-nervata ( Opiz ) Briq. = Mentha longifolia × Mentha spicata ): The home is the Czech Republic, Hungary and Turkey.

No longer belongs to the genus:

Mentha cablin Blanco ⇒ Indian patchouli ( Pogostemon cablin ( Blanco ) Benth. )

Catnip ( Nepeta cataria ) and Monarda punctata ( Monarda punctata ) do not belong to the genus of mint ( Mentha ).

Diseases

The rust fungus Puccinia menthae occurs on all mentha species and varieties . He does not change host, so all stages of development take place on Mentha .

use

Drawing from a manuscript of the herbarium of Pseudo-Apuleius from the 13th century: on the left a pregnant woman; the woman on the right holds a polei mint ( Mentha pulegium ) in her hand.

Mints have been grown in gardens for a very long time . In the year 812, Charlemagne already prescribed four types of mint for cultivation in gardens in his empire (see Capitulare de villis vel curtis imperii ): Polei mint ( Mentha pulegium ), water mint ( Mentha aquatica ), spear mint ( Mentha spicata ) and horse mint ( Mentha longifolia ).

The following short quote from the 9th century on the subject of the biodiversity of mint has also survived:

"But if
someone were to be able to name the powers and species and names of mint / all of them, then he would also have to
know / how many fish swim in the Red Sea, /
or how many sparks Vulcanus, the melting god from Lemnos, /
sends up into the air from the huge meals of Aetna. "

- Walahfrid Strabo : from Liber de cultura hortorum ( Hortulus for short )

Mint varieties relevant as spices and tea herbs often have names that indicate the similarity in taste to other plants:

Apple mint ( Mentha suaveolens ) - (apple pie scent): The similarity with apple mint is that it goes well with apple, for example as an apple pie spice instead of cinnamon.
Basil-Mint - (basil scent)
Bergamot mint ( Mentha x piperita var. Citrata ) - ( bergamot )
Orange mint ( Mentha x piperita var. Citrata ) - ( Orange )
Lemon mint ( Mentha x piperita var. Citrata ) - ( Lemon ) (Note: Lemon sounds similar, but not one of the mints and is not meant with lemon mint.)

Chocolate mint ( Mentha × piperita ), photographed in June

Chocolate mint ( Mentha × piperita var. Piperita ) - (mint-chocolate smell)
As Nanaminze several varieties are called.
Brown mint or noodle mint ( Mentha × gracilis = M. arvensis × M. spicata , Syn .: Mentha × cardiaca J. Gerard ex Baker , Mentha × gentilis auct.) Is used to prepare Carinthian noodle .

Multiplication

Most mentha species can be propagated quite easily by cuttings . For this purpose, strong shoots are cut off finger-length and put into moist soil for rooting, or the shoot is first left in a water glass to root and later planted in well-moistened soil.

swell

Xi-wen Li, Ian C. Hedge: Mentha. In: Wu Zheng-yi, Peter H. Raven (Ed.): Flora of China . tape 17 : Verbenaceae through Solanaceae . Science Press / Missouri Botanical Garden Press, Beijing / St. Louis 1994, ISBN 0-915279-24-X , pp. 236 (English, online - PDF file ). (Sections description, systematics)
Ian C. Hedge: Flora of Pakistan. 192: Labiatae. National Herbarium, Islamabad 1990, Mentha , p. 255, online. (Sections Description, Systematics and Distribution)
Rafael Govaerts et al. a .: World Checklist of Lamiaceae. Mentha. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Internet publication, last accessed February 27, 2016.
Details for: Mentha. In:The Euro + Med Plantbase Project. Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin-Dahlem, July 21, 2010, archived from the original onMay 4, 2012; accessed on September 12, 2011(English, provisional version).

Individual evidence

↑ Brigitte Alsleben (Red.): Duden dictionary of origin. Etymology of the German language. Dudenverlag, Mannheim 2007, ISBN 978-3-411-04074-2 , keyword “Mint” .
↑ Robert von Ranke-Graves : Greek Mythology. Sources and Interpretation . Rowohlt, Reinbek near Hamburg, 1984, ISBN 3-499-55404-6 , p. 107.
^ Ian C. Hedge: Flora of Pakistan. 192: Labiatae. National Herbarium, Islamabad 1990, Mentha , p. 255, online.
↑ Carl von Linné: Species Plantarum. Volume 2, Lars Salvius, Stockholm 1753, p. 576 ( digitized version ).
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d Mentha in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae ^af ^ag ^ah ^ai ^aj ^ak ^al ^am ^an ^ao ^ap ^aq ^ar ^as Rafaël Govaerts, 2003 : World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Mentha. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Accessed December 30, 2018.
↑ Ernst Gäumann: The rust mushrooms of Central Europe with special consideration of Switzerland. In articles on the cryptogam flora in Switzerland. Volume 12, 1959.

Web links

Commons : Mints - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Wiktionary: Mint - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Mint condition . Vivienne Baillie Gerritsen. Archived from the original on May 4, 2012.

Map with all linked sites: OSM | WikiMap

[Duden-1] Brigitte Alsleben (Red.): Duden dictionary of origin. Etymology of the German language. Dudenverlag, Mannheim 2007, ISBN 978-3-411-04074-2 , keyword “Mint” .

[Graves-Ranke-2] Robert von Ranke-Graves : Greek Mythology. Sources and Interpretation . Rowohlt, Reinbek near Hamburg, 1984, ISBN 3-499-55404-6 , p. 107.

[FlPak-3] Ian C. Hedge: Flora of Pakistan. 192: Labiatae. National Herbarium, Islamabad 1990, Mentha , p. 255, online.

[SpPl-4] Carl von Linné: Species Plantarum. Volume 2, Lars Salvius, Stockholm 1753, p. 576 ( digitized version ).

[GRIN-5] Mentha in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), USDA , ARS , National Genetic Resources Program. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.

[WCSP-6] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae ^af ^ag ^ah ^ai ^aj ^ak ^al ^am ^an ^ao ^ap ^aq ^ar ^as Rafaël Govaerts, 2003 : World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Mentha. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Accessed December 30, 2018.

[Gäumann-7] Ernst Gäumann: The rust mushrooms of Central Europe with special consideration of Switzerland. In articles on the cryptogam flora in Switzerland. Volume 12, 1959.