Gardening Advice: Instruction for Growing Lemon Balm
How to Grow Lemon Balm
in Your Herb Garden
Lemon Balm is one of the easiest herb plants to grow, and is a perennial that will winter over in many areas, particularly if mulched in the fall. It is used as a culinary herb, giving a lemon flavor to teas, jellies, salads, and sauces. Sometimes, it's sprigs are even floated decoratively in drinks (even white wine) to add a summery lemon flavor. The leaves make a lovely garnish.
This herb’s flower is a favorite of bees, so plant it strategically around your yard to attract these important pollinators to your other plants. Ages ago, it was customary for beekeepers to rub the inside of a new beehive with balm to encourage the bees to stay.
Gardening Advice Tip: Lemon balm can be invasive though, so keep a careful eye on your patch. I’ve found that it’s easiest to control it by planting it in pots or other containers, or else in a raised bed garden with very deep borders. It spreads by underground rhizomes (roots) and is difficult to remove once established.
Nutrition Information & Uses (back to top)
Lemon Balm has been used throughout history as a medicinal herb. It has a mild sedative effect and is also known to reduce fever and relieve gas. The tea increases perspiration, thus it’s use traditionally as a remedy for feverish colds. If you drink the tea after a meal, it helps your digestive process. Extracts of the leaves appear to have strong antibacterial and antiviral qualities. Balm tea is also reputed to have a tonic affect on the heart, possibly helping to lower blood pressure. Aromatherapists use the oil for treating stress/anxiety, nervous headaches & depression. The oil from this herb contains citronella and citral.
Other uses: Use the plant to scent your linens or clothes by keeping dried cuttings in your closet or as a sachet. The dried lemon balm leaves & oils are also used in potpourris and perfumes. Try tossing in a handful of lemon balm leaves in with your bathwater. It's antibacterial effects help cleanse your skin (useful for treating acne).
Climate / Growing Conditions (back to top)
Pick a partially sunny (or full sun) location for growing your lemon balm patch. It spreads quickly though, and can be a little difficult to restrain. You may want to grow it by itself in a raised bed garden to keep it contained.
How To Prepare the Garden Soil (back to top)
Lemon Balm will grow well in ordinary garden soil, but is happiest in a spot with well-drained soil in your herb garden. For optimal growing conditions, the garden soil pH should be between 5 and 7.5. (Information on how to test your garden soil pH level.) Mix in a healthy helping of well-rotted manure or compost before planting.
How To Plant Lemon Balm (back to top)
Plant lemon balm from seed in the spring or early fall. Cover with a light layer of soil or seed-starting mix, and keep damp. (Mist to water, or you’ll risk washing your seeds away!).
Lemon balm reproduces primarily through underground rhizomes. Or you can propagate lemon balm by taking cuttings (summer) from existing plants, or by digging up existing plants and dividing them (divide in the spring or fall). If dividing, make sure that each “new” plant has approximately 6 shoots). Plant them at least 1 foot apart.
How to Water
Keep the soil moist (not soggy). Drip irrigation is preferred (it helps prevent many plant diseases that are caused by watering from the top down).
Mulching around the plants helps the soil retain it's water better (use a mulch that's not been treated or dyed, or the chemicals may leach into your herb patch's soil).
How to Harvest Lemon Balm (back to top)
Harvest lemon balm frequently. Pruning this herb often causes the plant to grow bushy and more compactly. Harvest by cutting off shoots when they are approx. 1 foot long, being careful not to bruise the leaves.
Storage:
How to Freeze Lemon Balm (back to top)
Wash your lemon balm stems and pat them dry. Place on a cookie sheet and place in the freezer. Once frozen, remove and strip the leaves from the stem. Store in an airtight container in the freezer.
Or, chop the fresh leaves (after washing) and place them in ice cube trays. Fill the trays with water and freeze. When frozen, pop out the cubes and store in an airtight container in the freezer.
How to Dry (Dehyrdate) Lemon Balm (back to top)
Bundle shoots together and hang in the shade in an airy location to dry. When dry, remove the leaves and store in an airtight container, kept out of the light (sunlight discolors food stores).
You can also use a dehydrator, keeping the temperature on it's lowest setting (make sure it's below 100 degrees (F)) to ensure that you're not destroying the herb's oils.
NOTE: Dried or frozen lemon balm leaves aren't as strong in scent or flavor as when fresh, nor are they as attractive.
Gardening Advice Tips (back to top)
Have a helpful gardening tip (or even a fun story) to share about your lemon balm growing experience? Share it with us at: gardeningtips@howtogardenadvice.com
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