Do many people mistake spearmint for mint? Indeed, when we order food in a restaurant, whether it is mint water or mint-related food, we will see this kind of mint-like leaves as seasoning or decoration. In fact, those are not mint, but spearmint.

This mint is originated in Europe and widely cultivated. As a mint, body double appears in human meals. So what is the direct difference between Mentha crispa and mint? Let's find out today!

The leaves of the wrinkled spearmint are sessile or nearly sessile, with sharp apex, round or shallow heart-shaped base, sharp teeth on the edge, hard paper, green on the top and light green on the bottom. The flowering mode of the spearmint is a cymbal, which is densely packed into a spike-shaped inflorescence at the top of the stem or branch. The corolla is lavender, the lobes are nearly the same size, the filaments are filiform, the style is protruding, and the disk is flat-topped.

The ovary is brown, and the small nut is oval, triangular and dark brown with a round top. However, its advantage in catering is that it is hard and straight, and it will not deform after being pulled out for a long time. However, the menthol content contained in it will be lower, mainly carvone, so the taste will be clearer and less pungent, and it is not easy to usurp the host's role as a spice.

The leaves of mint are oval, oval, green, dark green and grayish green, etc. The flowers are axillary, one by one in the axillary position, with a spherical outline, and the flower diameter is about 1.8 mm, with or without stalks. Because the leaves of mint are softer and thinner, they are easy to dehydrate and look ugly when picked, so they are rarely used in catering decoration.

In breeding, spearmint with wrinkled leaves is also something we often meet in the flower market, because they are really easy to feed, like warm and humid climate, are heat-resistant and cold-resistant, but not waterlogging-resistant, and have a wide adaptability to the soil, but sandy loam is the best, and these plants can contribute a lot of fresh leaves if they keep sunny.

But growing mint needs rich and soft soil. If the flowerpot is too small, or the soil is too small to keep up with the nutrition, it will grow slowly, so it will be good to use breathable and permeable soil, common garden soil and rotten leaf soil, and add some chicken manure fertilizer.

Of course, if you want mint to reach the state of bursting pots, you should pay attention to these three points during the maintenance process. The first one is that the soil should be fertile and breathable, so it is recommended to use granular nutrient soil directly, which is breathable and fertile. The second one is to replenish water in time, especially in summer, mint needs high water, so it is generally necessary to water it once a day.

finally, it is necessary to supplement nutrients in time. it is suggested that when mint leaves are wrinkled or gray during maintenance, ternary compound fertilizer and three elements of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium can be added to make the roots and leaves grow rapidly, and naturally it can burst into pots.

Do you know anything about the differences between wrinkled spearmint and mint? Is there anything similar to them in flowers? Let's discuss it together!