Chocolate Mint Plant

LadyViper · 06-24-2006, 11:37 PM

My friend has a chocolate mint plant of some sort (I don't know the name, but that is the smell), growing in her pond. She got it from a neighbor, and it is doing very well and spreading like crazy. She is getting rid of some of them, and I was curious if I can put one in my aquarium. A few questions, if you have any idea what plant I am talking about:
Will it grow in the aquarium?
What do I have to do to clean it up, in case there is any disease in her pond?
Is it even okay to take a small pond plant and make it an aquarium plant?

MsMcClain · 06-27-2006, 11:43 AM

Just the name itself makes it sound appealing to me. (It's one of my favorite ice creams

). Let us know if you ever find out the name of it.

kelkat · 06-28-2006, 08:47 AM

If it truly is from the mint family then be careful. Mint is EXTREMELY invasive. It should be okay where ever you put it, but make sure you either contain it somehow or are prepared to divide and conquer on a regular basis.

A good rule of thumb on plants is if someone has plenty to share then it's a good chance the plant is invasive.

lindsey · 06-30-2006, 08:11 AM

I believe the proper name for the chocolate mint plant is called Chromatella(I could be wrong). It is like a water lilly. And indeed you can use the plant in a tea and tastes and smells just like chocolate mint. But if I remember right, it is mainly a pond plant and can really only adapt to pond life.

kelkat · 07-01-2006, 07:57 AM

If you had a big enough tank, could you grow water lilies inside? I don't know if they make a tank that would have enough room between the water surface and the top of the tank for the flower, but it would be interesting. For those with cat problems, it would give the fish a great place to hide.

LadyViper · 07-02-2006, 09:46 AM

It is def invasive, it is growing all over the place, and she is trying to share some. It seems to have a mind of it's own, and is just now growing up and out of the pond. Maybe I will skip it for the aquarium, and use it outside. I was thinking of starting a fishless water garden.

kelkat · 07-03-2006, 10:11 PM

If you put it in a container with a solid bottom, you might be okay. Most of the time mint spreads by the root system. Contain the roots and you contain the plant.