Plant of the day: spearmint

Mentha spicata

Purple spikes grow as high as my shoulder in the creek bed. This tall purple mint looks like the big brother of pennyroyal, which I wrote about last month. But its whorls of lavender purple flowers merge together towards the top of the spire, instead of remaining separated in distinct tiers. As with all the mints, it has a square stem and paired leaves.

Native to Europe, Mentha spicata is found across much of the United States and Canada.