Spearmint or spear mint (Mentha spicata) is a species of mint native to much of Europe and Asia (Middle East, Himalayas, China etc.), and naturalized in parts of northern and western Africa, North and South America, as well as various oceanic islands.Flora of China Vol. 17 Page 238 留兰香 liu lan xiang Mentha spicata Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 576. 1753. Subspecies Mentha spicata subsp. condensata (Briq.) Greuter & Burdet – Mediterranean region; naturalized in New Zealand Mentha spicata subsp. spicata – most of species range