A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2004 Peppermint needs help

I have a peppermint plant that has been growing happily all summer on my porch in a large pot. Recently, I started to notice that some of the ends were turning brown and dying. It almost looks as though the sffected stems had been cut off and dried, the leaves on these stems are brown and fall off when touched lightly. Other leaves have holes in them as though a bug had eaten he leaf leaving only the skeleton (the veins and the outline of the leaf). I noticed these kinds of holes on some of my neighbors flowers as well so it is possible that it's a plant pest or some such. If anyone has any clue as to what is wrong with my peppermint please let me know. IN the meantime I'm going to go home this evening and cut out all the affected areas in the hopes that it won't spread any further.

applescruff

hello apple...it may be that your peppermint plant has mites, which eventually cause dry brown spots or leaf edges. Check the underside of the leaves with a magnifying glass. The holes you've described could be anything from worms, snails or bugs etc. The good news is that peppermint is a pretty sturdy grower. Trimming off the offending portions of the plant will actually stimulate new plant growth.

That's true--give it a good pruning and maybe a little spray of soapy water after to wash off and get rid of any unwanted bugs still hanging around. You can spay the top of the soil too because sometimes they hide there as well...

After a bit more inspection and a lot more time on the internet I figured out that my peppermint had a fungus problem and that a few japanese beetles had moved in. I trimmed back the plant to almost nothing and it got a little better. Then I found an organic remedy of baking soda, vegetable oil, biodegradable soap, and water. The spray has kept the fungus in check and evicte the bugs. It still looks a bit spindly but there are lots of new shoots that appear to be tolerant to the fungus.

plant: 1
fungus: 0
bugs: 0

huzzah!

applescruff