65-MENTHA SPICATA
Local names: Spearmint, Pudina
Family: Lamiaceae
Location: Department of Botany
Characters: Spearmint is a perennial herbaceous plant. It is 30–100 cm (12– 39 in) tall, with variably hairless to hairy stems and foliage, and a wide-spreading fleshy underground rhizome from which it grows. The leaves are 5–9 cm (2–3+1⁄2 in) long and 1.5–3 cm (1⁄2–1+1⁄4 in) broad, with a serrated margin. The stem is square-shaped, a defining characteristic of the mint family of herbs. Spearmint produces flowers in slender spikes, each flower pink or white in colour, 2.5–3 mm (0.098–0.118 in) long and broad. Spearmint flowers in the summer (from July to September in the northern hemisphere), and has relatively large seeds, which measure 0.62–0.90 mm (0.024–0.035 in). The name ''spear'' mint derives from the pointed leaf tips. Mentha spicata varies considerably in leaf blade dimensions, the prominence of leaf veins, and pubescence.
General use: Some people use spearmint to help alleviate symptoms of nausea, indigestion, gas, headache, toothache, cramps, and sore throat. It is also applied topically, to the skin, to help reduce swelling due to nerve or muscle pain. A report published in the journal Food Chemistry indicates that spearmint extract has “good total phenolic and flavonoid contents” and “excellent antioxidant activity.”