“Pineapple Mint” is the most attractive plant in the Mentha family. Its variegated cream and green leaves have a light pineapple fragrance. The scientific name of pineapple mint is Mentha suaveolens variegata, and it is a cultivar of apple mint, which is believed to have first been grown in Europe and Asia. A variety of apple mint, but has green as white variegated leaves which make it a pretty herb to grow in the garden and perfect as a food garnish. A perennial plant, it produces long spikes of pale white or cream flowers.

Characteristics of Pineapple mint

- Pineapple mint grows to a height of 8-12.
- May be a noxious weed or invasive.
- This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds.
- Flowers are fragrant.
- Pineapple mint has green leaves that are edged by a white or cream color.
- True Pineapple Mint cannot be grown from seed and is hard to find because all the Mints cross readily.

How to grow Pineapple mint

- It grows well in rich, moist soil.
- Soil pH requirements:
6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic)
6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)
- It prefers shady site.
- Flowers bloom late summer.
- They grow well in tubs & pots.
- Besides the light factor, its grower has to know that it is not really suitable for growing outdoors without protection from rain. Rainfall in the tropics can be very heavy and all it takes is one very heavy downpour to flatten a colony of this rather fragile mint.
- Under good light, the stems of this mint can become quite thick and grows upright.
- Under dimmer conditions, it is seen to take on a sprawling growth habit.

Uses of Pineapple mint

- Uses: Aromatic, Cosmetic, Craft, Culinary, Medicinal and Ornamental.
- The soft, furry and wrinkled leaves of this particular mint cultivar are edged with white or cream which makes it a great garnishing material for desserts and ice-cream.
- Pineapple Mint is best used fresh.
- Pineapple Mint is good for garnishes because the thick leaves are slow to wilt. It is great used in iced tea.

Time for something interesting, and hopefully new for a number of people. Not everybody has a large section of land to setup a kitchen garden, but that should not stop you from still wanting to grow some of your own plants. Till now, you must be thinking, this is okay, “I can use a variety of containers to grow plants in”; the difference is that instead of you hunting for some large containers or other pots, you can a fairly easily available container. A tire is a relatively inexpensive (although some initial effort will be required) way to grow a plant in, and there are multiple ways in which you can grow your plants in these tyres.
And if you care about the environment, consider the benefits of using tires:
- Tires are something that every vehicle discards on a regular basis, and they do nothing but fill up landfills. You are doing the environment and your society a great favor by not going in for plastic containers, and instead using some of these old tires to make containers
- Tires last for a long time, and can be handled easily upto getting them into your kitchen garden
- Tires are very easily accessible (you can pick up your old discarded tires) or go to a repair shop and ask for old tires; they will be happy to let you take some
- There are many advantages to using raised bed planting methods, and you can easily set up tire gardening to simulate the raised bed situation
- For planting crops that grow underground such potato, you can stack old tires one over the other as a potato plant grows, so that you give more soil to grow more potatoes, and can eventually grow a sizable number of potatoes from your tire garden (refer to this link for how to actually cut the tires for a potato garden)
- Because tires are black (face it, you would never have seen a tire of another color) and are made of excellent rubber, they serve to maintain the soil at a near constant temperature
- Tires help in saving water by ensuring that they retain water moisture in the soil, thus requiring less amount of watering

How do you use these tires ?
- Depending on the use, you can either use one tire, or create a vertical stack of tires (if you are planting potatoes, you will be creating a vertical stock to give more soil for more potatoes; if you are planing herbs, you can use just one tire). You can either cut the rims out from the sidewheel to give you the other rubber strip if you are going to be planting a vertical line of tire containers, or you can just cut out the sidewheel from one side to get the required rim + lower sidewheel if you are going to be having a single tire container (be careful when doing this cutting)
- Cover the lower open section of the tire with newspapers and / or cardboard to prevent weeds from entering the mixture
- Get some good soil from your local garden or dealer and mix with some compost. Add the seeds you want to add to this mixture / or plant the herbs
- Watch out for the required watering, although this requires less watering than normal
- You get a great addition to your garden

You can grow herbs, lettuce, spinach, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, flowers, and many other items in these containers made of tires.

Coreopsis is a member of the Aster family. This plant is also called “Tickseed” or “Calliopsis”. Most varieties are perennials, with some annual varieties. They are natives of plains in the U.S. They usually bloom with daisy like flowers of yellow or orange from summer to the early part of autumn. Coreopsis is a member of the sunflower family that looks like a daisy. This attractive plant has yellow, gold, red, maroon, or a combination of these colors ,on sturdy stalks that grow from 1 1/2′ to 4′ tall. The Coreopsis flower attracts butterflies. Songbirds like the pods filled with seed. Coreopsis makes excellent cut flowers, too. The strong stems do not require staking. Coreopsis typically bloom bright yellow, daisy like flowers all summer and into the fall. It is known for its long bloom season.

Growing conditions for Coreopsis

- The Coreopsis is very easy to grow and will tolerate any soil except waterlogged soil.
- It prefers lean, sandier soils and requires little watering once established.
- Ideally the soil should be rich and have a pH of between 5.5 and 7. – - Full sun is preferred for prolific blooms.
- Little fertilizer and watering is needed for Coreopsis once established. – Dig up your Coreopsis clumps every three years or so to divide in the fall after blooming or in the early spring.
- Deadheading will encourage prolific blooming.
- No major diseases or pests impact Coreopsis health.
- Coreopsis has interest spring through fall with attractive foliage color and texture.

How to grow Coreopsis

Step 1 :
Sow coreopsis seeds in early spring, just after the final frost of winter. Select a planting location that receives full sun throughout the day and has well-drained soil that is low in fertility. Overly fertile soil can cause invasive growth.

Step 2 :
Mix coreopsis seeds with fine sand to make spreading easier. Broadcast the seed mixture across the surface of the planting site. Do not cover with soil, as sunlight encourages germination.

Step 3 :
Use a flat board to tamp down the seeds into the soil. Water thoroughly after planting to ensure good seed-to-soil contact and to prevent the seeds from being displaced by wind or rain.

Step 4 :
Water coreopsis plants one to two times per week once they’ve emerged, just enough to keep the soil moist without becoming waterlogged. Do not water during the winter, as the plants will not use the moisture.

Step 5 :
Remove any dead or faded coreopsis flowers to prolong the flowering season and prevent self-sowing, which can quickly become out of hand if not regulated. Cut off the flowers as close to the ground as possible and fresh growth will soon appear.

Chocolate mints Latin genus is Mentha piperita species and is not a native of our part of the world, but came from Europe. Growing mint, the world’s favorite flavor, has grown a new twist. The distinctive cool taste grows in more sweet varieties other than peppermint or spearmint. We are all well acquainted with chocolate mint.

Characteristics of Chocolate Mint

- Chocolate mint grows about 12 to 18 inches high.
- Chocolate mint does well in our zone 6 and is hardy to zone 3a.
- Chocolate mint blooms in late spring and early summer with violet-lavender blooms and the leaves are a wonderfully aromatic bronze-green.
- The bees and butterflies love it and even the birds seem to for some reason.
- Chocolate mint fills the surrounding air with a grand fragrance as one walks by.

Growing Conditions for Chocolate Mint

- This plant has two stages of growth. In the early spring, the plant produces flowers, and in the summer, the plant starts to send out shoots and runners.
- If chocolate mint is allowed to grow unchecked, it can become an unruly ground cover, and it has a slightly vine-like growth habit, so it can climb trees and shrubs.
- It’s happiest in partial shade but it will grow in any light from full sun to full shade and in any kind of soil you happen to have.
- The soil should be well-dug, fertile and water-retentive, but not water-logged.
- Set plants 12 to 18 inches apart, depending on the variety. To control their rampant ways, plant them in bottomless containers sunk into the soil. Clay drainage tiles, about 10 inches deep and 6 to 8 inches across, are ideal.

What Care should be taken

- A twice yearly feeding with bone meal will keep it even happier.
- Remove the flowers by hand as soon as they appear because if left, they will reduce the amount of leaves.
- Mint suffers from only one disease and that is rust – allow it to get a hold and it will kill all your mint plants. he best method is to examine each plant carefully for signs of rust (orange blobs generally on the underside of the leaves) and remove any leaves affected – spray as well with a chemical if you want.

Uses of Chocolate Mint

- It can be used as a garnish on salads, roasts, desserts, and a myriad of other dishes.
- Chocolate mint can be used in desserts; it can be added to sorbets and cakes.
- Chocolate mint can also make a very interesting star ingredient in mint sauce for Southeast Asian food, and it pairs well with spicy food.