Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Banana Mint (Mentha arvensis 'Banana')cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Banana Mint.

More about banana mint

About Banana Mint

Mentha arvensis 'Banana' · also called Banana Mint · herb

Banana Mint is a compact cultivar of corn mint with soft, fuzzy green leaves carrying a sweet banana-and-mint scent used in fruit salads, desserts and teas. Like all mints it spreads aggressively by runners and thrives in moist, rich soil with sun to part shade. Best contained in a pot.

Cold limit: USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter) · RHS H5 (15-26°C)

What banana mint's hardiness rating actually means

Yes — banana mint is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H5 and USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. Its RHS rating of H5 means: Hardy in most of the UK and in cold winters. On the US scale that maps to USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter) — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −15 to −10 °C. Banana Mint is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

Concretely, for banana mint as it gets too cold:

It tolerates winter lows to about −15 to −10 °C once established.
Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root.
First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.

Can banana mint go outside or overwinter — and where?

Plant it out within USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter) and it overwinters with little or no help.
It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy.
The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when banana mint can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H5 figure above.

Banana Mint hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is banana mint cold hardy?

Yes — banana mint is genuinely cold hardy. Rated RHS H5 and USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter), it lives outdoors all year and needs winter cold rather than protection from it. An outdoor plant. Banana Mint is hardy across USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter); it belongs in the ground or a frost-proof container, not on a windowsill, and many types actively need a cold winter to perform.

What is the minimum temperature banana mint can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about −15 to −10 °C. Banana Mint is built for winter — once established it takes hard frost and snow in its stride.

What hardiness zone is banana mint?

Banana Mint is rated USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter) and RHS H5 — Hardy in most of the UK and in cold winters.

Can banana mint survive winter outside?

Plant it out within USDA 5-9 (hardy perennial, dies back in winter) and it overwinters with little or no help. It does not want to come indoors — a warm winter room actually weakens a hardy plant by denying it dormancy. The real risks in its range are waterlogging, wind-rock on young plants, and a late hard frost on new growth — not ordinary winter cold.

What happens to banana mint below its minimum temperature?

It tolerates winter lows to about −15 to −10 °C once established. Below its rated zone, the visible damage is browned or blackened top growth and, in the worst case, a killed crown or root. First-year, newly planted, or container-grown specimens are noticeably less hardy than established garden plants — the roots are exposed.