Mentha canadensis

American cornmint, japanese peppermint, Japanese Peppermint

Family: Lamiaceae · Type: perennial · Native

American cornmint is a native perennial found in northwestern California, the Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, Great Valley, central western California, southern California, Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges, Modoc Plateau, and desert mountains in moist areas, streambanks, and lakeshores at elevations below 2,400 meters. Flowering from July to October, this plant produces white to pink or violet flowers 4 to 7 millimeters long in delicate axillary clusters. Growing with stems 10 to 50 centimeters tall that are softly hairy, it spreads with a distinctive branching habit. Its leaves are linear to lanceolate, 1.5 to 5 centimeters long, with serrated edges and a tapered base, covered in short hairs especially along the veins. The plant thrives in wet habitats, creating dense, aromatic patches that attract pollinators.

Habitat: Moist areas, streambanks, lakeshores, fields

Bloom period: Jul-Oct

Elevation: < 2400 m

Bioregions: NW, CaR, SNF, SNH, GV, CW, SCo, TR, PR, MP, DMtns

California counties: Nevada, Alpine, Solano, San Bernardino, Mono, Riverside, Humboldt, Siskiyou, Del Norte, Plumas, Colusa, Tulare, Fresno, Modoc, Kern, Inyo, Santa Clara, Monterey, Napa, Shasta, Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, San Joaquin, San Benito, Ventura, Marin, Tuolumne, Lake, Mendocino, San Diego, El Dorado, Placer, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Lassen, Sacramento, Glenn, Sonoma, Butte, Yuba, Tehama, Yolo, Santa Cruz, Mariposa, Stanislaus, Alameda, Contra Costa, Madera

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.