Mother's Herb Garden: Peppermint

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Lately, more and more people hove begun to understand just how ' limited-in both variety and nutritional valueour "modern" diets hove become. This realization has sparked o new and widespread interest in the culinory and therapeutic uses of herbs . . . those plants which—although not wellknown today—were, just one short generation ago, honored "guests" on the dinner tables and in the medicine chests of our grandparents' homes. In this regular feature, MOTHER examines the availability, cultivation, and benefits of our "forgotten" vege table foods and rem edies . . . and—we hope—helps pre vent the loss of still another bit of an cestral lore.

According to ancient Greek legend, Pluto—the god who reigned over the underworld—became enraptured by a nymph named Menthe . . . causing his wife, Proserpina, to turn the young beauty into an herb and banish her forever to regions of shadows and moisture. And—like most such tales—the myth still has relevance today: This perennial, peppermint ( Mentha piperita ), is often found growing wild in wet, shaded spots . . . but it will also thrive in your own garden or window box.

The herb is distinguished by a square, reddish, bitter stem. Red overtones are also visible in the leaves (which are darker green, larger, less crinkly, and more potent than those of spearmint), and the two- to three-foot spreading branches curve outward instead of growing straight up. Attractive rose-lavender flowers appear art cylindrical spikes in late July or August . . . and produce small, round, dark seeds. These, however, don't always reproduce true to the parent plant, so it's best to cultivate the herb from cuttings (which will generally root easily when placed in water) or—in the autumn—to plant small pieces of root two inches deep and six to eight inches apart.

Peppermint will grow almost anywhere that's out of the hot sun, but it prefers a moderately rich soil and at least partial shade. Because it spreads vigorously by underground runners, you might want to cultivate yours in containers (at least four inches in depth) or—in the garden—in beds surrounded by boards buried about six to eight inches in the earth (they'll help keep the mint from taking over your growing plot). When planted as a companion to cabbage—or strewn between any vegetables of the genus Brassica—peppermint helps deter the white cabbage butterfly.

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