(19 votes, average: 3.84 out of 5)
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Water Mint
Edible 
Autumn 
Spring 
Summer
A sweet tasting and large common mint found near or in water or sometimes damp woodland. Water mint hybridises easily with other mints and a cross of water mint and spearmint produces peppermint.
| Hedgerow Type | |
| Common Names | Water Mint |
| Scientific Name | Mentha aquatica |
| Season Start | Apr |
| Season End | Oct |
Leaves
Ovate with serrated edges. The leaves can be completely green to having purple edges and veins and can be hairy or smooth.
Flowers
Pink to lilac clusters of tiny flowers on the stem where the leaves join and one terminal cluster at the top of the stem.
Stem
Has a square stem that can be green to purple and hairy or smooth.
Habitat
Slow moving fresh water or ponds and lakes or sometimes damp woodland or boggy fields.
Possible Confusion
The smell is your best identification for finding members of the mint family. Water mint can usually be identified by being in or near water.
Taste
Sweet and minty.
Frequency
Fairly common in the right environment.
Medicinal Uses
Good as a tea for calming the nerves or stomach problems and can be used like any other mint.
4 comments for Water Mint
I would love to join you on one of your foraging course. Apparently, the listed course are fully booked. I wonder if you are planning to organise more foraging course in the future. If you do, would you be able to inform me about it, please.
We add new courses throughout the year so the best thing to do is keep your eye out for new ones. If you enquire at [email protected] you will be able to find out if we are putting up any courses near you.
Hi is it ok to eat raw water mint, I picked some that was growing in the silt near a river?
It’s best to avoid eating raw leaves from plants that are in water due to liver fluke but if the leaves were, and had been out of the water, you should be fine. Liver fluke require sheep as part of their life cycle, so if there are sheep anywhere along a water course, there could be liver fluke. Cooking destroys the parasites.