The Mint Family
How a knowledge of plant families can help with identification
Plant identification can seem overwhelming when the novice is faced with the multitude of species, but learning about plant families can speed up the process.
Learning a few of the larger plant families and their characteristics enables us to group related plants together for easier identification. Thomas J. Elpel’s excellent book Botany in a Day (Hollowtop Press, 1996) details all the North American plant families and is a useful reference for anyone learning to identify plants.
The mint family, one of the easiest to learn, contains many familiar and useful species, both wild (motherwort, bee balm, wild marjoram) and domesticated (thyme, sage, catnip). Below are just a few of the wild mint family plants and their identifying characteristics.
All mints have three features in common: 1) square stems, which can be easily discovered by rolling the stem between the fingers to feel the four sides meeting at right angles; 2) opposite leaves—each pair of leaves emerging from the same level, on opposite sides of the stem; and 3) “lipped” flowers—blossoms shaped like open mouths, the upper and lower lips of varying sizes, depending on the species. Indeed, the Latin name for the family, Labiaceae, means “lipped”. Most, but not all, mints are aromatic, with volatile oils that give the plant a strong odor and pungent taste, such as that of the most familiar family member, peppermint. Others, known as the bitter mints, lack a noticeable odor but taste bitter, such as skullcap and motherwort. Self-heal, mild in both smell and flavor, makes a nourishing salad green and also offers gentle immune system support. Nearly all the mints have medicinal applications, and many of them offer sedative or relaxing properties.
Wild marjoram—also known as wild oregano—grows about knee-high, with small purple, or occasionally white, flowers growing in heads at the tops of the plants and the ends of their branches. The leaves are roughly triangular and toothless, with slightly wavy edges and rounded tips. Rub a leaf and sniff—the smell will make you think of spaghetti sauce seasoning. The leaves and flowers may be dried for culinary use, or to make a soothing tea, used for menstrual cramps, heart palpitations, and insomnia.
Many lawns contain patches of wild thyme, a tiny creeping plant whose flowers color the ground purple at this time of year. If in doubt, tread on the plants, and the smell that rises up will confirm the presence of another herb which can be dried as a cooking spice. Thyme also contains thymol, a strong antiseptic that makes it useful in treating colds, flus, and sore throats. Garden thyme has similar applications and is somewhat stronger, having been used to treat whooping cough in children.
Stoneroot, also known by its Latin name, Collinsonia, grows in wooded areas and has large, egg-shaped, saw-toothed leaves that resemble those of wood nettle and white snakeroot. Stoneroot leaves, however, have a citronella odor when crushed. The half-inch, yawning, pale yellow flowers are distinguished by a fringed lower lip and very long, protruding stamens. The name comes from the use of the tinctured root (best dug in autumn) for treating gallstones. It has also been employed in healing bronchitis, hemorrhoids, and throat inflammation.
For more on mint family plants, see Healing Mints. Other plant family articles include The Rose Family, The Parsley Family, and The Mustard Family.
