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Mentha arvensis
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Lamiaceae
Genus:	Mentha
Species:	M. arvensis
Binomial name
Mentha arvensis L.
Synonyms
List Calamintha arvensis (L.) Garsault Mentha agrestis Sole Mentha agrestis Hegetschw. Mentha agrestris Sole Mentha albae-carolinae Heinr.Braun Mentha alberti Sennen Mentha allionii Boreau Mentha angustifolia Schreb. Mentha anomala Hérib. Mentha approximata (Wirtg.) Strail Mentha arenaria Topitz Mentha arguta Opiz Mentha argutissima Borbás & Heinr.Braun Mentha argutissima var. subpilosa Topitz Mentha arvensis var. caespitosa Boenn. Mentha arvensis var. lanceolata Becker Mentha arvensis var. legitima Becker Mentha arvensis var. minor Becker Mentha arvensis var. parietariifolia Becker Mentha arvensis subsp. parietariifolia (Becker) Briq. Mentha arvensis var. parviflora Boenn. Mentha arvensis var. procumbens Becker Mentha arvensis var. radicans Boenn. Mentha atrovirens Host Mentha austriaca Jacq. Mentha badensis J.Fellm. ex Ledeb. Mentha badensis C.C.Gmel. Mentha baguetiana Strail Mentha barbata Opiz ex Déségl. Mentha bracteolata Opiz ex Déségl. Mentha campestris Schur Mentha campicola Heinr.Braun Mentha collina Topitz Mentha cuneifolia (Lej.) Domin Mentha deflexa Dumort. Mentha densiflora Opiz Mentha densifoliata Strail Mentha diffusa Lej. Mentha dissitiflora Sennen Mentha divaricata Host Mentha divergens Topitz Mentha dubia Schleich. ex Suter Mentha duffourii Sennen Mentha duftschmidii (Topitz) Trautm. Mentha duftschmidii Topitz Mentha ehrhartiana Lej. & Courtois Mentha exigua Lucé Mentha flagellifera Schur Mentha flexuosa Strail Mentha florida Tausch ex Heinr.Braun Mentha fochii Sennen Mentha fontana Weihe ex Strail Mentha fontana var. brevibracteata Topitz & Heinr.Braun Mentha fontana var. conferta Topitz Mentha fontqueri Sennen Mentha fossicola Heinr.Braun Mentha gallica (Topitz) Domin Mentha gentiliformis Strail Mentha gentilis Georgi Mentha gracilescens Opiz ex Strail Mentha graveolens Opiz Mentha hillebrandtii Ortmann ex Malinv. Mentha hostii Boreau Mentha hostii var. arvina Topitz Mentha intermedia Nees ex Bluff & Fingerh. Mentha joffrei Sennen Mentha kitaibeliana Heinr.Braun ex Haring Mentha lamiifolia Host Mentha lanceolata Benth. Mentha lapponica Wahlenb. Mentha lata Opiz ex Déségl. Mentha latifolia Host Mentha latissima Schur Mentha laxa Host Mentha longibracteata Heinr.Braun Mentha maculata Host Mentha melissifolia Host Mentha minor Opiz ex Déségl. Mentha moenchii Pérard Mentha mosana Lej. & Courtois Mentha multiflora Host Mentha multiflora var. serpentina Topitz Mentha mutabilis (Topitz) Domin Mentha nemorosa Host Mentha nemorum Boreau Mentha nobilis Weihe ex Fingerh. Mentha nummularia Schreb. Mentha obtusata Opiz Mentha obtusodentata (Topitz) Domin Mentha ocymoides Host Mentha odorata Opiz ex Déségl. Mentha origanifolia Host Mentha ovata Schur Mentha palitzensis Topitz Mentha paludosa Nees ex Bluff & Fingerh. Mentha palustris Moench Mentha parvifolia Opiz Mentha parvula Topitz Mentha pascuorum (Topitz) Trautm. Mentha pastoris Sennen Mentha piersiana Borbás Mentha pilosa Spreng. ex Wallr. Mentha pilosella Pérard Mentha plagensis Topitz Mentha plicata Opiz Mentha polymorpha Host Mentha praeclara Topitz Mentha praecox Sole Mentha praticola Opiz Mentha procumbens Thuill. Mentha prostrata Host Mentha pulchella Host Mentha pulegiformis Heinr.Braun Mentha pumila Host Mentha rigida Strail Mentha rothii Nees ex Bluff & Fingerh. Mentha rotundata Opiz Mentha ruderalis Topitz Mentha salebrosa Boreau Mentha sativa Roxb. Mentha schreberi Pérard Mentha scrophulariifolia Lej. & Courtois Mentha segetalis Opiz Mentha silvicola Heinr.Braun Mentha simplex Host Mentha slichoviensis Opiz Mentha sparsiflora Heinr.Braun Mentha sparsiflora var. pascuorum Topitz Mentha subcollina Topitz Mentha subcordata Colla ex Lamotte Mentha subfontanea Topitz Mentha subinodora Schur Mentha sylvatica Host Mentha tenuicaulis Strail Mentha tenuifolia Host Mentha thayana Heinr.Braun Mentha uliginosa Strail Mentha vanhaesendonckii Strail Mentha varians Host Mentha verisimilis Strail Mentha villosa Becker Mentha viridula Host

Mentha arvensis, the corn mint, field mint, or wild mint, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. It has a circumboreal distribution, being native to the temperate regions of Europe and western and central Asia, east to the Himalaya and eastern Siberia, and North America. Mentha canadensis, the related species, is also included in Mentha arvensis by some authors as two varieties, M. arvensis var. glabrata Fernald (North American plants such as American Wild Mint) and M. arvensis var. piperascens Malinv. ex L. H. Bailey (eastern Asian plants such as Japanese mint).

It grows in moist places, especially along streams.

Description

Wild mint is a herbaceous perennial plant generally growing to 10–60 cm (4–24 in) and rarely up to 100 cm (40 in) tall. It has a creeping rootstock from which grow erect or semi-sprawling squarish stems.

The leaves are in opposite pairs, simple, 2–6.5 cm (3⁄4–2+1⁄2 in) long and 1–2 cm (1⁄2–3⁄4 in) broad, hairy, and with a coarsely serrated margin.

The flowers are pale purple (occasionally white or pink), in whorls on the stem at the bases of the leaves. Each flower is 3 to 4 mm (1⁄8 to 5⁄32 in) long and has a five-lobed hairy calyx, a four-lobed corolla with the uppermost lobe larger than the others and four stamens. The fruit is a two-chambered carpel.

Subspecies

Subspecies include:

• Mentha arvensis subsp. arvensis.
• Mentha arvensis subsp. agrestis (Sole) Briq.
• Mentha arvensis subsp. austriaca (Jacq.) Briq.
• Mentha arvensis subsp. lapponica (Wahlenb.) Neuman
• Mentha arvensis subsp. palustris (Moench) Neumann
• Mentha arvensis var. piperascenes Malinv. ex L. H. Bailey – Japanese/Chinese/Korean mint
• Mentha arvensis subsp. parietariifolia (Becker) Briq.
• Mentha arvensis subsp. haplocalyx (Linnaeus, e.g. var. sachalinensis)

The related species Mentha canadensis is also included in M. arvensis by some authors as two varieties, M. arvensis var. glabrata Fernald (in reference to North American plants) and M. arvensis var. piperascens Malinv. ex L. H. Bailey (in reference to eastern Asian plants).

Uses

The leaves have been made into tea to treat colds or aid digestion. They can also be eaten raw.

Chemical substances that can be extracted from wild mint include menthol, menthone, isomenthone, neomenthol, limonene, methyl acetate, piperitone, beta-caryophyllene, alpha-pinene, beta-pinene, tannins and flavonoids. Mint extracts and menthol-related chemicals are used in food, drinks, cough medicines, creams and cigarettes. Menthol is widely used in dental care, as a mouthwash potentially inhibiting streptococci and lactobacilli bacteria.

Diseases

Two main diseases that can significantly damage Japanese mint (M. arvensis var. piperascens) and its yield are the rust fungus and the mildew attacks. Mildew attacks usually only occur on the west coast of United States where the weather can be foggy and humid, a condition that attracts mildew. Rust fungus is a disease that is common for most of the Mentha plants such as peppermint and spearmint. These diseases are flagged due to the improbability of controlling once it starts in a mint farm. They are typically cut immediately when discovered to help reduce the probability of contaminating the rest of the plant leaves.

References

1. Maiz-Tome, L. (2016). "Mentha arvensis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T64317970A67730082. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T64317970A67730082.en. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
2. "Mentha arvensis L." Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Archived from the original on 13 January 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
3. ^ "Mentha arvensis". Euro+Med Plantbase Project. Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin-Dahlem. 2010. Archived from the original on 18 July 2011.
4. "Mentha arvensis". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
5. ^ Stace, C. (11 March 2008). van der Meijden, R.; de Kort, I. (eds.). "Mentha arvensis L." Flora of NW Europe. Archived from the original on 11 March 2008.
6. ^ "Mentha canadensis". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
7. Quattrocchi, Umberto (1947). CRC World dictionary of plant names: Common names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, Synyonyms, and Etymology. Vol. III M-Q. CRC Press. p. 1659.
8. "Mentha arvensis". Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The University of Texas at Austin. 2013. Archived from the original on 16 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
9. Blamey, M.; Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). Flora of Britain and Northern Europe. ISBN 0-340-40170-2.
10. Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan. ISBN 0-333-47494-5..
11. "Corn mint: Mentha arvensis". NatureGate. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
12. "Mentha sachalinensis in Flora of China". Flora of China (series) Vol 17. p. 237. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2017-06-19. Mentha sachalinensis (Briquet ex Miyabe & Miyake) Kudô, J. Coll. Sci. Imp. Univ. Tokyo. 43(10): 47. 1921. 东北薄荷 dong bei bo he.
13. Quattrocchi, Umberto (1947). CRC World dictionary of plant names: Common names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, Synyonyms, and Etymology. Vol. III M-Q. CRC Press. p. 1659.
14. Fagan, Damian (2019). Wildflowers of Oregon: A Field Guide to Over 400 Wildflowers, Trees, and Shrubs of the Coast, Cascades, and High Desert. Guilford, CT: FalconGuides. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4930-3633-2. OCLC 1073035766.
15. Benoliel, Doug (2011). Northwest Foraging: The Classic Guide to Edible Plants of the Pacific Northwest (Rev. and updated ed.). Seattle, WA: Skipstone. p. 80. ISBN 978-1-59485-366-1. OCLC 668195076.
16. Shaikh, Mosma Nadim; Suryawanshi, Yogesh Chandrakant; Mokat, Digambar Nabhu (4 March 2019). "Volatile Profiling and Essential Oil Yield of Cymbopogon citratus (DC.) Stapf Treated with Rhizosphere Fungi and Some Important Fertilizers". Journal of Essential Oil Bearing Plants. 22 (2): 477-483. doi:10.1080/0972060X.2019.1613933. S2CID 191177588.
17. ^ Maria Kostka-Rokosz; Yelena Yalli; Lana Dvorkin; Julia Whelan. "Mentha Arvensis Piperascens". Boston Healing Landscape Project. Boston University School of Medicine. Archived from the original on 2015-03-19. Retrieved 2013-12-12.
18. Freires IA, Denny C, Benso B, de Alencar SM, Rosalen PL (22 April 2015). "Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oils and Their Isolated Constituents against Cariogenic Bacteria: A Systematic Review". Molecules. 20 (4): 7329–7358. doi:10.3390/molecules20047329. PMC 6272492. PMID 25911964.
19. ^ Sievers, A. F., & Lowman, M. S. (1933). Commercial possibilities of Japanese mint in the United States as a source of natural menthol (No. 378). US Dept. of Agriculture.

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment
• Photo gallery

• IUCN Red List least concern species
• Mentha
• Flora of Asia
• Flora of Europe
• Flora of Northern America
• Leaf vegetables
• Plants described in 1753
• Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus