· By Monisha Dajee
LEMON BALM – PLANT SPOT LIGHT
I really need to shed some light on this amazing herb. Lemon balm has grown strong in my plot for the past few years. To be honest, I have always thought it grew like a weed in my veggie patch as it overshadowed some of my more delicate herbs. However, I think I will be treating it with a lot more respect now after learning all about it's wonderful properties! It’s a truly resilient plant and very easy to grow. ‘Melissa Officinalis’ is a herbaceous perennial that provides lemony leaves in spring. It flowers in Summer which our bees really enjoy.
In my opinion, it has a wonderful fragrance, but my partner dislikes the taste and thinks it smells like mosquito repellent. I kind of understand what he means, but I love lemon balm in tea blends and adding a few leaves in a salad. It also seems to naturally repel leaf munching creatures and can be used to create a natural bug repellent too.
I wanted to utilise the herb the best way this year; so both my partner and I can enjoy the benefits of this underrated wild plant. So we decided to make a tincture. I’ll post about the process in the following post - WILDCRAFTING WEEDS.
Lemon Balm is a sedative plant. It can be good for anxiety, depression and stress. It also has great anti-viral properties so I think it will make for another great immune boosting remedy this year!
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