Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Canada Mint - Mentha canadensis   L.
Members of Lamiaceae:
Members of Mentha with account distribution info or public map:
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AuthorL.
DistributionThe taxonomic split between M. arvensis in the strict sense and M. canadensis -- a native species in N.A. -- has not carried over to many herbaria. Hardly any specimens have been annotated. Therefore, the website editors cannot with certainty identify each and every specimen. Nonetheless, collections from Avery, Macon, Transylvania, and Watauga counties appear to be good canadensis. Specimens from Orange County are from cultivated plants.

Native of the U.S. and Canada; ranges in the East south to much of VA, the NC Mountains, TN, and AR.
AbundanceRare. The NCNHP should put the species on its Watch List (W7), as more needs to be known about it. It is possible that botanists in the Mountains have seen it and failed to collect it, thinking it might well be not native to the U.S.
HabitatSeepage near cemetery, montane bog, wet meadow; likely an obligate wetland species.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting June-August.
IdentificationCanada Mint features a series of 4-10 hemispherical clusters of densely-packed, pink to lavender flowers in axils of the leaves. Its leaves are tapered to the base, versus relatively rounded at the base in the non-native Field Mint (M. arvensis).
Taxonomic CommentsMost references, especially older ones, simply included this taxon within M. arvensis, and thus as a species containing both North American and Eurasian populations, or with the assumption that all are simply Eurasian in origin.

Other Common Name(s)American Wild Mint
State Rank[S2?]
Global RankG5
State Status[W7]
US Status
USACE-agcp
USACE-emp
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