Grow Your Own Tea Herbs

Drinking herbal tea is an exceptionally guilt-free pleasure for me because it has no caffeine, no tannin, no calories; it tastes delicious and is relatively cheap. If drinking it doesn’t come to you naturally, you can quickly begin a daily routine of tea drinking by adding it your breakfast or early morning snack.

People have been using herbs to cure illnesses for hundreds of years. Some herbal teas can give you a bit of extra pep while others can help you calm down. One plant can help with an uneasy stomach while still other plants can relieve your mind.

A few beds of of delicious tea herbs will get you through the long, cold winter with yummy warm tea and you can use the fresh herbs for your summer cold teas.

Aromatic herbal teas are easy to make directly from your herb garden. Pluck off a few leaves from your favorite tea herb like chamomile, peppermint, spearmint or fennel and you’re all set.

Making your own herbal tea is uncomplicated. If you use dried herbs, use one teaspoon for each cup. If you’re making a whole pot put one teaspoon per cup (plus you should an additional teaspoon for better results).

Because your fresh tea herbs aren’t as potent and the dried ones, you’ll want to use more of them. Try 2 to 3 teaspoons for each cup.

Although you can make your teas using any one of the many yummy tea herbs, it is also good to mix it up with a customized blend. Add lemongrass or rosehip to your beebalm tea for a tangy, citrus tea.

You can use all of these herb plants in your teas:

• Beebalm: Although this herb is a part of the mint family, it has a light, citrus scent that is reminiscent of me of oranges. Beebalm was initially used in a tea by the Oswego Native Americans in Canada. You can get the same benefits they did, to relieve your upset stomach. You can even make it to ease with your sore throat.

• Hibiscus: There are many varieties of hibiscus to choose from when you plan your garden. If you are planning your garden for tea, I suggest the rose mallow type because it has a slight taste of oranges and lemon. The marsh mallow (where the name, not the item marshmallow comes from) variety of hibiscus is known to soothe sore throats and help with stomach ulcers—just gather the petals and make your tea!

• Lemon Verbena: This little herb has a whole lot of lemon flavor and taste to bring your herbal tea, whether you use fresh or dried leaves. This is a really good herb to add to your green tea, which make it more palatable.

• Rosehip: The hip of the rose herb has been thought to be among the most valuable herbs around due to its high vitamin C content. The high vitamin C content is likely the reason why they usually help with cold and flu prevention.

I also suggest that you brew fennel, elderflower or German chamomile in your next home-brewed cup of tea.

Don’t forget that herbal teas make great gifts—it doesn’t cost much and your friends and family members will certainly appreciate it.

Good luck with your herb gardening. Be sure to let me know how your herb garden grows.

Here is more information on Tea Herb Gardening. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Herb Gardens.