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Favorite herbs for tea

14 years ago

I'd like to know your top 10 favorite herbs for teas. I am planning an herb garden, with limited space, but would like a nice selection.

Can you also let me know which ones are okay for children? I don't have kids, but my nieces and nephews like to help in the garden. I'd like to know which teas they can have. (For example, I've heard spearmint is a better choice for children than peppermint).

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Comments (8)

Daisyduckworth
14 years ago
You can make a tea from just about any edible herb, and, depending on the plant, you can use the leaves, flowers, bark, seeds, or roots of a plant to make it (you need to learn which parts of which plants are used).

What you need to keep in mind is that ALL herbal teas are medicines - yes, even the common black or green tea or coffee. As a rough rule of thumb, one cup of herbal tea provides a daily dose for an adult. One teaspoon is a daily dose for a child under 12.

While there are certain herbal teas which are considered safe for children, it's best not to give them ANY, except under expert, professional, supervision. Children's bodies are immature, and they react to substances in very different ways from adults.

This is why herbal teas/medications are not generally recommended for pregnant women - they can have adverse effects on the developing foetus - or cause abortion (or at the least uterine contractions).

I suggest for your garden, you think first about the ailments you want to treat yourself for. If you suffer headaches, you might choose feverfew, or thyme, or lavender. If you suffer frequent bouts of cystitis, you might choose agrimony, or nasturtium. For occasional bouts of indigestion, peppermint (or any mint) will do the job, but if you overdo the mint, it can have exactly the opposite effect.

I strongly recommend that you do some homework before you start using herbal teas of ANY kind. Search the WWW for something like 'herbal treatment headache' and repeat for other ailments. Make sure to take note of any contraindications (such as diabetes, pregnancy, heart problems, blood pressure problems etc) and unwanted side effects.

For instance, lemon balm (an apparently innocuous little herb!) makes quite a nice-tasting tea. However, it is contraindicated for use by people with thyroid dysfunction, and it can cause night-sweats (a real problem for menopausal women). It can also sensitise a person to other allergens.

Another herb commonly thought to be harmless, and given to children as a sedative is chamomile. However:

Sufferers of allergies to daisies, ragweed, asters or chrysanthemums should avoid using chamomile. Allergic reactions include difficulty with breathing, throat constriction, swelling of lips, tongue or face, or hives. In cases of fragile pregnancy, chamomile should be avoided as it will promote a delayed menses. May cause stomach upsets, including vomiting, in some people. Do not use chamomile if taking blood-thinning or other sedative medications.

Are you beginning to see what I'm saying here? When there is a benefit (an upside), there is almost always a disadvantage (a downside) when it comes to herbs. Just be aware!

You really need to do your homework on this one. Grow the herbs of your choice, and use them in your cooking, but be aware that in medicinal doses (like tea) you should regard them with the same cautions as you would a cabinet full of pills.
herbalbetty
14 years ago
Chamomile
Catnip
Lemon Balm
Chocolate Mint
Anise Hyssop
Lemon Verbena
Fennel Seed
Rose
Spearmint
Red clover
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Mint Teas: Makes a gallon - use only glass containers, plastic leaves a funny after taste. I use those glass jugs that apple juice/cider is often sold in. Citris Mint Tea (this is my Mom's favorite and I got the recipe from her): In a large pan (eventually needs to comfortably hold a gallon of liquid), bring 5 cups water to boil. Turn off heat and add a bunch of mint(I use 10-20 sprigs of mint, various kinds, and depending how strong I want it). Add 10 pinches or teaspoons of loose black tea (again depending how strong you want the "tea" flavor). Cover and let steep for 2 (two) hours. In a sauce pan, bring 5 cups water to boil, reduce heat and add 2 cups sugar (I only use one cup, because I don't like my tea too sweet), one cup lemon juice, and one frozen 12oz can orange juice concentrate. Keep well stirred until well disolved/mixed. Cover, turn off heat and let sit 2 hours. after the two hour wait: Add the juice mixture to the tea mix. Add 8 cups cold water and stir/mix well. Remove mint sprigs w/ tongs. Strain mixture using a very fine strainer into 1 gallon jug and top off with cold water if needed. Shake jug and refrigerate. Serve cold, over ice. You may want shake jug prior to each serving. Apple-Cinnamon Mint Tea (This one I came up with by making substitutions to the above recipe, as I prefer apples to oranges) In large pot (again eventually will hold nearly a gallon of liquid) bring 5 cups water to boil. Turn off Heat Add 10-20 sprigs mint add 10 pinches-teaspoons loose black tea (to taste) Add 2-3 cinnamon sticks. Don't use powdered cinnamon, it doesn't dissolve, found this out the hard way. Cover and let steep 90 minutes. In a saucepan bring the following to near boiling, but don't let it boil. Mainly just want it hot enough to get the sugar to dissolve: 4 cups unfiltered apple juice (has a cloudy white color to it) 2 cups cranberry juice (to replace the lemon tartness of the earlier recipe and complements apple better than lemon) 1/4 (1 quarter) cup brown sugar Stir until dissolved/mixed cover and turn off heat, let sit 90 mins. I originally used frozen apple juice concentrate, but it ended up too syrupy/sticky for some reason - using the actual juice turned out much better. After the 90 min wait: Add juice mix to tea pot, turn on heat to get it all steaming again and stir well. Then cover and remove from heat for another 30-40 minutes. Add 8 Cups cold water and stir. remove mint and strain the mix into 1 gallon jug, top off with cold water if needed. Cap and shake jug, refrigerate and serve cold over ice.
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>>I ordered the following herb seeds: Lemon Balm, Catnip, Rosemary, Sage, German Chamomile, Fever Few, Lavender, Lemon Grass, Orange Gem Marigold, Lemon Bergamot, Angelica, Anise. The idea is for container herbs. You won't like Feverfew tea, and you probably won't like "Marigold" tea either. I'm wondering if your Marigold is what people used to call Marigolds--now "Calendulas"--or Tagetes. The flower petals from Calendulas aren't much of a tisane but a food dye. Monarda didyma is an outstanding tisane plant. It is the standard substitute for bergamot organges for making Earl Grey tea. It makes a pleasant fragrant tonic by itself, or mix it half and half with black tea. Lemon grass is pleasant but not easy to grow. You will have to overwinter it in frost-free shelter. It is rare from seed but it can be had. You might want to substitute easier herbs that smell similarly, like Lemon Balm. In my climate I grow Lemon Verbena. >>Does anyone know a good site for growing information? My own website WILL BE compiling information soon. It's not there yet and it's been painful trying to compile information. I will SPECIFICALLY have a lot of information about "tonics" ("herbal tea"). It should start showing up in a few weeks. It will show up somewhere in the vicinity of this page http://www.mutuallyassuredsurvival.com/wiki/tiki-browse_categories.php?parentId=32&deep=off&type= from which you can follow the links. Beware of books on herbs. Most of them contain very superficial and useless information. Much of the information they do have is inaccurate, dated, or refers to a different plant than what they think. There are several problems, but from a marketing standpoint one of the big problems is that the subject attracts a lot of dilettantes (present fine company excepted!). There is also the problem that very few people grow more than a few token herbs. One common problem that I see is that books about "using herbs" refer to dried herbs even when referring to herbs that do not dry well!! They just assume that you will buy them and not grow them. Another similar problem is that they will refer largely to ingredients that are not herbs, but tropical commodities and spices that most of us could never grow--cinnamon sticks, lemon peel, sugar, cloves, etc.
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fatamorgana2121
14 years ago
Anything with a lemon flavor is nice for tea, lemon balm being probably the easiest to grow in your zone.

Dried fruits added to the tea mixture are nice for kids. Everything from rosehips to blueberries to apples to the dried fruit of your choice can be used. If you add some fruiting plants to your garden like strawberries or blueberries or raspberries, the kids will love the munchables while these plants are herbs in their own rights.

The mints are nice and hardy for your zone. Catnip, peppermint, spearmint, flavored mints.

Sweeten the tea for more kid appeal. Honey is a wonderful tea sweetener.

FataMorgana
lavender_lass
Original Author
14 years ago
I was thinking of growing lemon balm, because lemon verbena won't work with our winters, unless it's an annual. Adding dried fruit is a wonderful idea. I have a few blueberry bushes and hope to add more. Apples and raspberries are good too. I have one apple tree and hope to get two more this fall. Has anyone tried purple raspberries?

Chocolate mint would be fun for the kids and rose tea sounds very nice. I have heard that while chamomile is usually considered a safe herb, it can be a problem is someone is allergic to ragweed.

I wasn't planning to make herbal remedies or anything else without a lot more study first. I realize some people may read a book and go out and start self-medicating, but believe me, that would not be me. I also always ask parents if kids have allergies to any food before giving them a snack...same thing would go for tea.

Someone recommended adding a few mint leaves to regular iced tea. That could be a fun alternative.
cyrus_gardner
14 years ago
LEMON GRASS, EXCELLENT BY ITSELF OR TO FLAVOR OTHER TEAs.
boothc9
14 years ago
My favorite is lemon balm. It grows so easily too. Being that it is related to mint, it almost takes over your garden if you aren't careful.

Also, I love thyme so I like to make tea with that too. I grow English thyme but I would think lemon thyme would be better for tea.
lunar_raven
14 years ago
For me...

Chamomile
Lemon Verbena
Anise
Valerian (A tea for insomnia, I put this because it's a huge help and one of my favorite herbs because of it)
Hibiscus (lovely, cranberry tasting flower)
Rose Hips
Peppermint
Lemon Grass
Jasmine
Lavender
lavender_lass
Original Author
14 years ago
Thank you all for your responses. It seems the most popular are mints, chamomile, rose hips and anything lemon :)

I would love to grow jasmine, but which jasmine do you use for tea? All we have here is star jasmine, which I'm guessing is not the right one. I doubt jasmine will grow in zone 4, but will it grow in a greenhouse? That's my Mom's favorite tea!

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