• Menthol mint is an erect, herbaceous, perennial, medicinal and aromatic plant growing to a height of 60 - 100 cm introduced into India from Japan in 1954.
• Menthol ios extracted from the essential oil of menthol mint is widely used in perfumery, flavouring and pharmaceutical industries.
• It is commercially cultivated in Uttar Pradesh, Haryan Punjab and in Andhra Pradesh. It can be cultivated under irrigated conditons of Andhra Pradesh in well drained, fertile sandy loam soils having PH 6.0 - 7.0. Both red and black soils are suitable for cultivation.

• Kosi, Himalaya, Kalks, Shivalik etc., are high yielding varieties.

• It can be prepared by rhizomes, runners and growing tips. In January - February planting rhizomes are used.
• In other seasons runner / growing can be used as planting material.

• The land is prepared to fine tilth by harrowing and planking.
• During winter season, furrows are made 60 cm spacing and are planted 7 - 10 cm deep, end to end @ 300 - 400 kg per hectare and watered with soil.
• The field is irrigated immendiately after planting.

• The field is to be jkept moist by frequent irrigations till suckers sprout, subsequently the crop is irrigated at 7 - 10 day intervals.
• Weeding is very important for the first 75 days in this crop and the field is to be kept weed free by repeated hand weedings.
• Pendimethalin or Oxyflourofen as pre-emergence herbicides effectively control weeds. This can be profitably intercropped in sugarcane.
• 10 toinnes of well-rotten FYM, 150 kg DAP and 100 kg MOP per hectare are applied at the time of planting. Subsequently, 150 kg N in the form of urea is applied in 3 split doses at 35, 50 and 70 days after planting.

• They are no major pests or disease in this crop.

• First harvest of the herb is taken 110 - 130 days after planting. Entire above ground herb is cut close to the ground.
• Second harvest is taken 60 - 75 days after first harvest. The herb is distilled after a day of drying in the field.
• The herb yield ranges from 24 - 30 tonnes and oil yidl from 120 - 150 kg per hectare in the first harvest and, subsequent harvests give about 80 - 100 oil per hectare.
• In Andhra Pradesh, the crop may give three harvests and higher herb and oil yeilds. The price of the oil ranges from Rs. 180 - 350 per kg.
• The net profit ranges from Rs. 20000 - 25000 per hectare per year at a price of Rs. 200 per kg of oil.
• The cost of cultivation works out to approximately Rs. 15000 per hectare.

• The oil is distilled from the herb by using a distillation process as described in palmarosa. The recovery of oil from the herb is 0.5 - 0.8 per cent.
• The duration of distillation is 4 - 6 hours for complete recovery of the oil.

There are other mint species which can also be profitably cultivated. The details are given briefly in the ensuing page.