Peppermint

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Peppermint (disambiguation).

Peppermint
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Mentha
Species:
M. × piperita
Binomial name
Mentha × piperita
Synonyms
List
  • Mentha × odora Salisb.
  • Mentha × balsamea Willd.
  • Mentha × banatica Heinr.Braun
  • Mentha × braousiana Pérard
  • Mentha × concinna Pérard
  • Mentha × crispula Wender.
  • Mentha × durandoana Malinv. ex Batt.
  • Mentha × exaltata Heinr.Braun
  • Mentha × fraseri Druce
  • Mentha × glabra Bellardi ex Colla
  • Mentha × glabrata Vahl
  • Mentha × hercynica Röhl.
  • Mentha × heuffelii Heinr.Braun
  • Mentha × hircina Hull
  • Mentha × hircina J.Fraser
  • Mentha × hirtescens Haw. ex Spach
  • Mentha × hortensis Ten.
  • Mentha hortensis var. citrata Ten.
  • Mentha × hudsoniana Heinr.Braun
  • Mentha × kahirina Forssk.
  • Mentha × langii Geiger ex T.Nees
  • Mentha × napolitana Ten.
  • Mentha × nigricans Mill.
  • Mentha × officinalis Hull
  • Mentha × pimentum Nees ex Bluff & Fingerh.
  • Mentha × piperoides Malinv.
  • Mentha × schultzii Boutigny ex F.W.Schultz
  • Mentha × tenuis Frank ex Benth.

Peppermint (Mentha × piperita) is a hybrid species of mint, a cross between watermint and spearmint.[1] Indigenous to Europe and the Middle East,[2] the plant is now widely spread and cultivated in many regions of the world.[3] It is occasionally found in the wild with its parent species.[3][4]

Although the genus Mentha comprises more than 25 species, the one in most common use is peppermint.[5] While Western peppermint is derived from Mentha × piperita, Chinese peppermint, or bohe, is derived from the fresh leaves of M. haplocalyx.[6][7][8] M. × piperita and M. haplocalyx are both recognized as plant sources of menthol and menthone, and are among the oldest herbs used for both culinary and medicinal products.[5][9]

Botany

Peppermint flowers
An 1887 illustration from Köhlers; Medicinal Plants

Peppermint was first identified in Hertfordshire, England, by a Dr. Eales, a discovery which John Ray published 1696 in the second edition of his book Synopsis Methodica Stirpium Britannicarum. He initially gave it the name Mentha spicis brevioribus et habitioribus, foliis Mentha fusca, sapore fervido piperis and later in his 1704 volume Historia Plantarum he called it Mentha palustris or Peper–Mint. The plant was then added to the London Pharmacopoeia under the name Mentha piperitis sapore in 1721.[10][11][12][13] It was given the name Mentha piperita in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus in his Species Plantarum Volume 2.[14] Linnaeus treated Peppermint as a species, but it is now universally agreed to be a hybrid between Mentha viridis and Mentha aquatica with Mentha viridis itself also being a hybrid between Mentha sylvestris and Mentha rotundifolis.[15][16] It is an

corolla about 5 mm (3⁄16 in) diameter; they are produced in whorls (verticillasters) around the stem, forming thick, blunt spikes. Flowering season lasts from mid- to late summer. The chromosome number is variable, with 2n counts of 66, 72, 84, and 120 recorded.[17][18][19]
Peppermint is a fast-growing plant; once it sprouts, it spreads very quickly.

Ecology

Peppermint typically occurs in moist habitats, including stream sides and drainage ditches. Being a hybrid, it is usually sterile, producing no seeds and reproducing only vegetatively, spreading by its runners.[4][19]

Outside of its native range, areas where peppermint was formerly grown for oil often have an abundance of feral plants, and it is considered invasive in Australia, the Galápagos Islands, New Zealand,[20] and the United States[21] in the Great Lakes region, noted since 1843.[22]

Cultivation

Peppermint grown in a pot outside a house

Peppermint generally grows best in moist, shaded locations, and expands by underground rhizomes. Young shoots are taken from old stocks and dibbled into the ground about 0.5 m (1.5 ft) apart. They grow quickly and cover the ground with runners if it is permanently moist. For the home gardener, it is often grown in containers to restrict rapid spreading. It grows best with a good supply of water, without being water-logged, and planted in areas with partial sun to shade.

The leaves and flowering tops are used; they are collected as soon as the flowers begin to open and can be dried. The wild form of the plant is less suitable for this purpose, with cultivated plants having been selected for more and better oil content. They may be allowed to lie and wilt a little before distillation, or they may be taken directly to the still.

Cultivars

Several cultivars have been selected for garden use:

  • Mentha × piperita 'Candymint' has reddish stems.[23]
  • Mentha × piperita 'Chocolate Mint'. Its flowers open from the bottom up; its flavour is reminiscent of the flavour in Andes Chocolate Mints, a popular confection.[24][25][26]
  • Mentha × piperita 'Citrata' includes a number of varieties including Eau de Cologne mint,[27] grapefruit mint, lemon mint,[28] and orange mint. Its leaves are aromatic and hairless.
  • Mentha × piperita 'Crispa' has wrinkled leaves.[29]
  • Mentha × piperita 'Lavender Mint'[30]
  • Mentha × piperita 'Lime Mint' has lime-scented foliage.[31][32]
  • Mentha × piperita 'Variegata' has mottled green and pale yellow leaves.[33]

Commercial cultivars may include:

Diseases

Verticillium wilt is a major constraint in peppermint cultivation. 'Todd's Mitcham', 'Refined Murray', 'Roberts Mitcham' (see above), and a few other cultivars have some degree of resistance.[36]

Production

Peppermint production
2020
Country Production
(tonnes)
 Morocco 40,403
 Argentina 6,991
 Mexico 1,010
World 48,437
Source:
FAOSTAT of the United Nations[37]

In 2020, world production of peppermint was 48,437 tonnes, led by Morocco with 83% of the world total and Argentina with 14% (table).

In the United States, Oregon and Washington produce most of the country's peppermint,[38] the leaves of which are processed for the essential oil to produce flavorings mainly for chewing gum and toothpaste.[39]

Chemical constituents

Peppermint has a high menthol content. The essential oil also contains menthone and carboxyl esters, particularly

cineol (3–6%). Peppermint oil also contains small amounts of many additional compounds, including limonene, pulegone, caryophyllene, and pinene.[41]

Peppermint contains terpenoids and flavonoids such as eriocitrin, hesperidin, and kaempferol 7-O-rutinoside.[42]

Oil

Peppermint oil has a high concentration of natural pesticides, mainly pulegone (found mainly in M. arvensis var. piperascens (cornmint, field mint, or Japanese mint),[43] and to a lesser extent (6,530 ppm) in Mentha × piperita subsp. notho[44]) and menthone.[45] It is known to repel some pest insects, including mosquitos, and has uses in organic gardening. It is also widely used to repel rodents.[46][47][48][49]

The chemical composition of the essential oil from peppermint (Mentha × piperita L.) was analyzed by

beta-caryophyllene.[50]

Research and health effects

topically for muscle pain, nerve pain, relief from itching, or as a fragrance.[53][54] High oral doses of peppermint oil (500 mg) can cause mucosal irritation and mimic heartburn.[53][54]

Peppermint roots bioaccumulate radium, so the plant may be effective for phytoremediation of radioactively contaminated soil.[55]

Culinary and other uses

Fresh or dried peppermint leaves are often used alone in

fruit preserves, alcoholic beverages, chewing gum, toothpaste, and some shampoos, soaps, and skin care products.[38][39]

Menthol activates cold-sensitive TRPM8 receptors in the skin and mucosal tissues, and is the primary source of the cooling sensation that follows the topical application of peppermint oil.[56]

  • Candy canes are one of the most common peppermint-flavored candies
    Candy canes
    are one of the most common peppermint-flavored candies
  • Mentha × piperita hybrid known as 'Chocolate Mint'
    Mentha × piperita hybrid known as 'Chocolate Mint'
  • Freeze-dried leaves
    Freeze-dried leaves

Peppermint oil is also used in construction and plumbing to test for the tightness of pipes and disclose leaks by its odor.[57]

Safety

Medicinal uses of peppermint have not been approved as effective or safe by the US Food and Drug Administration.[58] With caution that the concentration of the peppermint constituent pulegone should not exceed 1% (140 mg), peppermint preparations are considered safe by the European Medicines Agency when used in topical formulations for adult subjects.[59][60] Diluted peppermint essential oil is safe for oral intake when only a few drops are used.[53][59]

Although peppermint is commonly available as a

cyclosporine, medicines for heart conditions or high blood pressure, or medicines to decrease stomach acid.[58]

Standardization

  • ISO 676:1995—contains the information about the nomenclature of the variety and cultivars[61]
  • ISO 5563:1984—a specification for its dried leaves of Mentha piperita Linnaeus[62]
  • Peppermint oil—ISO 856:2006[63]

See also

References

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  2. ^ "Peppermint". Botanical Online. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  3. ^ a b Euro+Med Plantbase Project: Mentha × piperitaArchived 9 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ a b Flora of NW Europe: Mentha × piperita Archived 19 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine
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  10. ^ Ray, John (1696). Synopsis Methodica Stirpium Britannicarum. p. 234.
  11. ^ Flückiger, Friedrich August (1874). Pharmacographia: A History of the Principal Drugs of Vegetable Origin, met with in Great Britain and British India. Macmillan. pp. 481–2.
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  13. ^ Porter, C. L. (1951). "The History of Mentha piperita and Its Economic Importance in Indiana". Proceedings of the Indiana Academy of Science. 61: 364–268.
  14. ^ Linnaeus, C. (1753). Species Plantarum 2: 576–577.
  15. Stace, C. A.
    , ed. Hybridization and the flora of the British Isles page 387.
  16. ^ Wong, Warren (1972). The Changes that Occur in Peppermint Oil During Aging, Including the Relationship Between Changes in Chemical Composition and Flavor Characteristics. Ph.D. dissertation. Rutgers. p. 10.
  17. ^ "Mentha x piperita - Peppermint - Flora of Northwest Europe". 2014. Archived from the original on 29 December 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
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  20. ^ Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk: Mentha x piperita Archived 2022-01-19 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Mentha ×piperita L. (pro sp.) [aquatica × spicata]". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
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  23. ^ The Herbarist. Herb Society of America. 1997. p. 39. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  24. ^ "Mentha piperita cv. Chocolate Mint". Mountainvalleygrowers.com. Archived from the original on 2013-04-02. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
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  27. ^ "Mentha x piperita 'Citrata' : eau de cologne mint". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. 2007-09-12. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  28. ^ "Mentha x piperita var. citrata : lemon mint". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. 2007-09-12. Archived from the original on 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  29. ^ "Mentha x piperita 'Crispa' : eau de cologne mint". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. 2007-09-12. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  30. ^ "HortiPlex Plant Database: Info, Images and Links on Thousands of Plants". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  31. ^ Harrowsmith Country Life. Camden House Pub. 1990. p. 48. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2013.
  32. ^ "Mentha x piperita 'Lime Mint' : eau de cologne mint". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. 2007-09-12. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  33. ^ "Mentha x piperita 'Variegata' : variegated mint". Hortiplex.gardenweb.com. 2007-09-12. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
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