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Appreciation post: the guy at the greenhouse on 5th warned me about balcony mint and I didn't listen until it took over
Stopped by a little greenhouse on 5th Street back in March for some starter herbs and the owner, an older guy named Pete, grabbed my arm when I picked up a mint pot and said "put that in a separate pot or it will own your whole balcony by July." I nodded, took it home, and planted it in the same long box as my basil and peppers because I figured one little plant couldn't do much. By mid June the mint had sent runners under the soil and popped up between every single pepper plant, and I spent a whole Saturday yanking roots out of a 4 foot planter. Just got back from buying three separate 8 inch pots so nothing else gets choked out again. Has anyone else had mint jump containers like that, and does it ever actually stay put once it's in its own pot?
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wadea536d ago
Pete knew what he was talking about, that's for sure. Mint is a beast, it spreads underground and those roots just keep going, so even if you pull the top part the roots are still down there doing their thing. Good call on the separate pots, that's really the only way to keep it from taking over everything. One thing to watch though, mint can still send runners out the drainage holes and sneak into whatever is sitting next to it, so give those pots a little space from your other plants. Mine stayed put once it had its own pot but you still have to yank out the runners that try to escape now and then.
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