Mentha arvensis L.
Field mint, wild mint, corn mint
Field mint is a herbaceous perennial native to temperate parts of the northern hemisphere, including Europe and North America.
Plants: Typically 4–24″ (10–60 cm) high. As with other mint family plants, stems are square in cross-section.
Leaves: Opposite, simple, ¾–2½ ⨉ ⅜–¾″ (2–6.5 ⨉ 1–2 cm), with pointed tips and finely hairy undersides. Lower leaves are on short stalks, while upper leaves are sessile. Leaves are hairy, egg-shaped or lanceolate, and coarsely serrated. When fresh leaves are crushed, they have the odor of peppermint or sweet fruit.
Flowers: Pale purple (sometimes white or pink). They form whorls on the stem around leaf bases, looking a bit like lavendar pom poms. Each flower group is about 1″ (2.5 cm) around, containing about 20 flowers. Individual flowers are 1/16–⅛″ (3–4 mm) long, with a 5-lobed hairy calyx 1/32–1/16″ (1.5–2.5 mm) long and comprised of small triangular lobes. They have a peppermint odor. The corolla has four lobes, the uppermost of which is larger than the others. There are 4 stamens. Flowers appear in mid to late summer.
Fruits: Four oval nutlets do not split open when dried. Each contains a single seed.
Habitats: Moist habitats such as stream banks.
Edibility: Leaves are used to flavor tea or may be eaten raw, but other mint varieties are generally preferred for this.
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Similar species. |
Online References:
8/7/2017 · Groton Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 15 cm) 
8/28/2013 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4½″ (12 × 11 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
8/7/2017 · Groton Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 3 × 4½″ (7.9 × 11 cm) 
8/22/2012 · Squannacook River Wildlife Area, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 6″ (18 × 15 cm) 
8/7/2017 · Groton Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 4 × 6″ (11 × 16 cm) 
7/31/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
8/15/2021 · Bass Falls Preserve, Alna, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm) 
8/15/2021 · Bass Falls Preserve, Alna, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 4″ (9 × 10 cm) 
7/31/2012 · Bemis Rd Conservation Area, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
8/15/2021 · Bass Falls Preserve, Alna, Maine · ≈ 6 × 3½″ (14 × 9.4 cm) 
8/28/2013 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 5″ (13 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
| Order | Lamiales | Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary |
| Family | Lamiaceae | Mint family |
| Genus | Mentha | From Minthe or Menthe, a water nymph in Greek mythology, who was transformed by Persephone into a mint plant in revenge for Minthe’s ongoing affair with Hades (husband of Persephone). |
| Species | arvensis | Of the fields |
Mentha arvensis description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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