Peppermint in Your Cannabis Grow Room, Is Companion Planting Proving To Be The Best Cannagrowing Technique Available?

peppermint cannabis growing planting

With the legalization of cannabis more and more people are going into cannabis cultivation bother on a large scale and small scale. And to ensure success there has been a rise of diverse methods of getting healthier plants and more yield. These methods could either be natural or chemical but one thing they all have in common is the ability to increase yields and make healthier plants.

What is companion planting?

Companion planting is one of such old and well-known natural methods that give good results when used on your cannabis plants. Companion planting is a cheap and organic means of providing support for your plants. It allows for growing several similar plants close to one another in other to boost the overall growing environment. Each plant has individual features that make it unique, this could be in the form of structural support, soil improvement, and odor or resin emission to repel or attract plant predators. Companion planting is one of the best means of protecting cannabis plants and can be adapted for both indoor and outdoor growth. Adopting companion planting for your cannabis ensures it develops a good pest and disease resistance, has better growth and more yields.

Several companion plants work well for cannabis such as dill, yarrow, coriander, yarrow, alfalfa, cerastium, peppermint among others. They have different uses as some repel insects and some that attract them and those that increase your soil potency.

Cannabis and Peppermint

A cross between spearmint and watermint, peppermint contains several great compounds that make it useful for several purposes including food and medicine. It is also one of the easiest plants to grow as the underground rhizomes develop very quickly.

Although THC, a major ingredient present in cannabis repels hundreds of pests, the plant is still exposed to several. Peppermint is a great companion plant for your cannabis as it enriches the soil and helps in fighting pests especially aphids. These small bugs or lice suck the sap from your plant, reproduce rapidly and can cause serious damage to any plant. Aphids, roaches, and mice can be repelled by peppermint because it contains menthol. It also helps in masking the smell of cannabis for those who are concerned about discretion. Besides, you are confident that your cannabis plant will not be contaminated by the mint as there is no cross-pollination between them

Characteristics of Mint

Having mythological origins and being indigenous to Mediterranean countries, mint is a hardy perennial that is short-stemmed and has wrinkled leaves with toothed edges. Its flowers change sex as they are usually male on the first day and female on the second day of blooming, it serves as a means of pollen transmission and survival for them. The Salvia genus is the largest and most diverse genus of the mint plant with many of its members having trichomes (hairs) on their flowers, leaves, and stems.

Growing Mint

Peppermint is a relatively easy plant to grow that requires rich, moist loamy soil and some partial shade. To grow mint as a companion plant to cannabis, some essential things must be kept in mind. Firstly, the plant has to be kept shorter than the cannabis plant because cannabis requires adequate lighting while mint requires partial shade and also not to overshadow the cannabis plant. Also, the mint plant has to be grown in a separate pot or soil patch as it tends to spread easily, this will ensure that it does not compete with the cannabis plant for nutrients and space or overpower it. However, you should still ensure that the mint plant is still high and bushy enough to provide camouflage for your cannabis.

Peppermint’s first-year crop can be very bountiful and aromatic although it can be harvested at any time of the year.

Other Uses of Peppermint

In addition to being a great companion plant for cannabis, mint has a great flavor that makes it great for use in food, tea and also in oils for aromatherapy. This is because it contains some compounds such as menthone, menthol that make it aromatic and also beneficial for the treatment of conditions such as itching, pain and respiratory issues. Peppermint oil is popularly used for aromatherapy all over the world as it is reputed to have soothing properties too. Its leaves and flowers are useful and it does not matter whether it is fresh or dried. It can also serve as a great companion plant to cabbage, broccoli, kale, tomatoes, eggplant, and roses.

While being great for indoor use as a companion plant, mint might not be so great for outdoor cannabis growing as it could cause cross-contamination by attracting pollination from other plants to your cannabis. Also, it should not be planted directly close to your cannabis plant as it can be quite invasive.