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Longleaf mint belongs to the mint family, which includes various herbs and plants. The leaves of the culture have a delicate aroma and a universal purpose. They are used in cooking to flavor foods and drinks. Long-leaved mint contains a high percentage of ascorbic acid.
Description of Longleaf Mint
Longleaf mint is a perennial herbaceous plant that forms strong upright branched stems. They are pubescent, tetrahedral with sharp edges. The plant reaches a height of 120 cm. The creeping rhizome is located horizontally close to the soil surface.
The leaves are thickened, bluish-green in color, large oblong. In length, leaf plates grow from 5 to 15 cm, in width – up to 3 cm. The top of the leaf is pointed, the edges are unevenly serrate, the petiole is short. From the photo and description of the long-leaved mint, you can see that the foliage of the stems, subject to agricultural practices, is good.
The flowers are small, numerous, collected in spike-shaped inflorescences, pubescent, pale purple. Flowering occurs from mid-summer earlier than other species. Longleaf mint is a good honey plant.
The use of mint in cooking
Longleaf mint is used as a spice to add flavor to meat and fish dishes. Fruit and vegetable salads are prepared with fragrant leaves. In some cuisines of the world, it is added in the manufacture of pickled cheeses. Fruit drinks, compotes, bread kvass are flavored with spicy grass. Also added when pickling, pickling and pickling vegetables.
What is the flavor of longleaf mint?
Longleaf mint has a pleasant smell of menthol, which, unlike peppermint, is more delicate and subtle. The aroma is created by essential oils that are contained in the composition of the plant. Leaves are most fragrant before flowering.
Where can you add longleaf mint
Tea is brewed with fresh and dried mint leaves, including using them as part of a mixture with other herbs. It also flavors soft drinks and alcoholic drinks. Mint is put in sauces, it goes well with cabbage, carrots and legumes. Spicy grass is added to confectionery, pastries, fruit sauces.
Health Benefits of Longleaf Mint
Long-leaved mint has a calming effect, relieves fatigue. Peppermint tea has a beneficial effect on the digestive system, eliminates bloating, destroys pathogenic microflora, promotes weight loss.
Ice cubes with fragrant grass wipe the areas of inflammation on the skin of the face. Such use, including has a tonic effect, narrows the pores.
In addition to medicinal properties, long-leaved mint also has contraindications, for example, it is not recommended for children, pregnant and lactating women. Also, the use of mint in large quantities adversely affects men’s health. Substances that make up mint can cause allergic reactions.
The use of long-leaved mint in traditional medicine
Long-leaved mint contains fewer active ingredients compared to other species, but it is also used in folk medicine as a medicinal plant. The content of vitamin C in the composition allows it to be used as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agent.
Externally, mint leaves gruel is applied to the skin for the treatment of fungal diseases, and is also taken with phytovanny grass.
Mint infusion rinses the mouth with abscesses or ulcers, and also relieve inflammation in the throat. Leaves neutralize bad breath. Tea with spice reduces spasms, eliminates the feeling of nausea and reduces appetite. Has a choleretic effect.
Rules of landing
The place for growing mint is chosen sunny, but quite humid. The soil must be fertile and loose. Heavy clay soils are not suitable for growing crops. On heavily calcareous soil, plants become less fragrant. With a lack of moisture and light, partial leaf fall occurs.
The culture tolerates growing in low-lying areas with little flooding. Mint is decorative during its long flowering, so it is planted in flower beds and near water bodies.
Long-leaved mint is planted in early spring or late summer. The place is prepared in advance: the site is deeply dug up, weeds are removed. Thanks to the branched rhizome, the plant spreads quickly, so the place of cultivation is limited by curbs or cuts of iron and plastic are dug in along the perimeter of the ridge.
The culture is propagated by rhizomatous cuttings. In the summer, planting material is separated from young plants and rooted in sand beforehand, then transferred to a permanent place of cultivation. From old bushes, the plant is cut and transplanted in early spring or autumn.
The cuttings are planted in pre-prepared grooves about 10 cm deep and covered with earth. When planting, plants are placed after 30 cm, about 50 cm are left between rows.
Features of cultivation and care
Mint is moisture-loving, when growing it, the soil should not be allowed to dry out. In the summer, in the absence of natural precipitation, daily watering is necessary. With sufficient soil moisture, the amount of leaf mass increases by 2-3 times.
During the growing season, several loosenings are carried out. Mint bushes do not resist weeds well, so they need to be weeded regularly. The culture is demanding on soil fertility. Plants are fed in early spring with complex fertilizer, as well as manure or compost.
Long-leaved mint is resistant to cold, but to protect against severe frosts, planting is covered with a layer of soil, manure or dry leaves.
Pests and diseases
Longleaf mint has many specific pests. Depending on weather conditions, some insects can cause serious damage to plants up to their complete destruction.
Longleaf mint pests:
- mint flea;
- mint leaf beetle;
- mint mite;
- green shield;
- aphid;
- meadow moth;
- drooling pennitsa;
- caterpillars,
- bear.
Insecticides are used to control pests. Preparations are used a month before the collection of raw materials and the use of fresh leaves for food. To prevent the appearance of soil pests, the soil is deeply dug up before planting. Only healthy planting material is used for cultivation.
Longleaf mint is most often exposed to various fungal diseases, for example:
- rust;
- powdery mildew;
- wilt;
- anthracnose;
- leaf spot.
When fungal diseases appear, fungicides are used. Affected plants are removed and burned.
In order to prevent the occurrence of diseases and pests, long-leaved mint is grown in crop rotation. In one place, plants are recommended to be left no more than 2-3 years. The best predecessors for culture: legumes, root crops. Plant resistance is increased by fertilizing.
When and how to harvest longleaf mint
Mint with long leaves is harvested in dry weather before or at the beginning of its flowering, this period falls on the middle and second half of summer. At this time, the concentration of essential oils and other beneficial substances in the plant is the highest. Raw materials from long-leaved mint are obtained from the first year of cultivation. With careful cutting, the bushes grow well, which allows you to get a second crop.
To harvest raw materials, the tops of the youngest stems are cut off without signs of disease. The branches are cut to 1/3 of the total length.
How to dry long leaf mint
Mint dries quickly and well. After cutting, the plants are washed and tied into bunches according to the size of the stems. Then they are hung in a shady place on the street for one day to drain the water. In the future, the raw materials are kept for 5-7 days in a dry and ventilated place, for example, in attics or under a canopy.
The dried leaves are separated from the stems, crushed to the required fraction. Store raw materials until the next season in glass jars under a lid or linen bags.
Conclusion
Longleaf mint is a spicy herb with a cooling menthol taste. Tall, branched stems produce many fragrant leaves that are ready to be cut from the end of June. Fresh and dried long-leaved mint is used as a seasoning and for brewing healthy tea.
