Peppermint

Mint gets its name from the nymph Minthe. When Persephone realized that her husband Hades had fallen under the spell of the nymph, she transformed her into a plant. Feeling guilty, Hades, god of the Underworld, gave her her scent. Its virtues have been known since antiquity. It is mentioned in one of the oldest known medical treatises, the Ebers Papyrus. There, it is described as "calming for the stomach."

Dried mint leaves are said to have been found in Egyptian tombs, showing that it was used in funerary rites at the time.

Among the Hebrews, Greeks, Romans, in Indian and Chinese Medicine, and even in the works of the famous Hildegard of Bingen, the renowned herbalist nun, mint holds a prominent place on the podium of medicinal plants. It is used for digestion, breath, or to give courage.

"Mint is certainly one of the most well-known plants, one that, along with linden and verbena, dares to claim, in its paper sachet, the honors due to noble tea, the fabulous prince of all herbal teas." (P. Lieutaghi) It is a perennial plant with a square stem that can reach one meter in length, with opposite, toothed petiolated leaves (small "stem").

It thrives in cool, humid, rich, and sunny soils. Its creeping structure makes mechanical weed control difficult, and its organic cultivation is costly and therefore rare in France. Among the many varieties of mint, peppermint is the most commonly used in aromatherapy. It is harvested in June, before flowering, and its yield is average. For 1 ton of fresh plant material, 2 to 6 kg of essential oil are obtained.

The United States is currently the largest producer.

Although familiar, peppermint essential oil needs to be tamed! Reserve it mainly for emergencies, as our reference authors describe very well.