Spearmint garnish to make cold water even more refreshing at Bluebird Gardens.

"...my mint has taken over my garden. What on earth do I do with it all?" -- Ellen

Hi Helen, lucky you, I can't imagine summers without fresh mint from my garden.

Mint, like many herbs, can easily take over if it's not somehow contained. Herbs also tend to like poor soil and will grow aggressively if they have better growing conditions so use herbs in areas where not much else will grow.

I personally like having healthy herbs. I plant them so that I brush against them when I walk through my garden paths.

Blooming herbs are also an excellent source of nectar for my bees, both honey bees and native bees.

A patch of blooming spearmint in my garden. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Blooming herbs make nice cut flowers to enjoy inside when summer days are too hot to be outside. They also are easy and safe to use as garnish.

Blooming spearmint near one of my small ponds. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

If you still want to remove some of your overgrown herbs, wait for a day after a good rain and pull the extra herbs you don't want. Don't worry, you won't get all of the roots. The pruning process will slow down their creeping progress.

You want to cut spearmint before it flowers, which is when its flavor is strongest. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Don't toss those volunteers, you can cut off the tops and use them in salads, in water or drinks that need a little umph, as a garnish on deserts and ice creams.

If you keep the cut mint in a flower vase in refrigerator, it will last for a couple of weeks and you can easily add them to your cooking.

Charlotte