Herbal Tea & the Tower Garden
- by Holly Ciancioso
- January 5, 2024
- True Garden Blog
Herbal Tea Tower Garden
Embrace the joy of cultivating your own herbal tea with a Tower Garden! Uncover the optimal herbs for creating a modest garden dedicated to herbal tea. Easy to cultivate, homegrown herbs offer a more robust flavor, aromatic fragrance, and delightful taste. Moreover, these herbs are packed with healing benefits, ranging from soothing anxieties to promoting better sleep. Chances are, you’ve encountered bland, insipid tea before. Often, this is due to the quality of the herbs or the brewing method—both of which are easily rectifiable!
Why Plant an Herbal Tea Tower Garden?
- Delicious Taste: Opting for an herb garden for your tea means enjoying potent homegrown herbs like mint, holy basil, and chamomile. These surpass anything store-bought, which is often less flavorful due to being grown in hothouses.
- Healing Powers: Many herbs come with inherent healing benefits. Mint, lavender, and chamomile, for instance, have been used for stress relief and sleep regulation for centuries. The roots of herbal medicine trace back to the Sumerians, who utilized tea infusions for treating various conditions. Traditionally, apothecaries stocked herbs for healing, marking the inception of modern medicine. Beyond their medicinal value, preparing and sipping your own herbal tea is a deeply nurturing experience.
- Easy to Grow: Cultivating these gardens is a breeze! A small space is all you need to grow herbs for steeping. Whether outdoors or indoors, most “tea plants” thrive across North America and are hardy perennials.
- Fun and Relaxing: Growing a variety of herbs allows for exciting tea blends and experiments. Imagine combining chamomile, chocolate mint, and lavender for a heavenly concoction! Additionally, many herbs’ scents are a delight, and they can be used in various ways, from culinary dishes to herbal soaps.
Herbs to Grow in Your Tower Garden:
- Mint: Peppermint leaves make an excellent tea, especially iced. Mint grows vigorously, so monitor its spread. True Garden offers three types: Common Mint (Spearmint), Chocolate Mint, and Peppermint. It’s also an effective digestive aid.
- Chamomile: These small, daisy-like flowers are cherished in Europe for their earthy, slightly sweet tea. It’s a gentle choice for soothing nerves and promoting sleep.
- Coriander (Cilantro): Its leaves and seeds add a warm, citrusy flavor to your brew.
- Catnip: Belonging to the mint family, it offers a lemon-mint taste. Note: It’s advisable for pregnant women to avoid catnip tea.
- Lavender: Known for its fragrant scent, lavender can calm and soothe when inhaled. It’s known to improve sleep quality, reduce anxiety, and enhance mood.
- Holy Basil: Esteemed in Ayurvedic medicine, Holy Basil helps counteract stress effects and boasts antidepressant and antianxiety properties.
- Rosemary: Sipping rosemary tea can help alleviate melancholy or depression.
- Stevia: Sweeten your teas naturally with leaves from the Stevia plant.
- Anise Hyssop: Its sweet, licorice-mint flavor enriches any tea.
- Echinacea: This coneflower is not just for colds or the flu; it also addresses pain, inflammation, and migraines.
How to Dry Herbs:
For the best flavor, harvest your herbs before they flower.
- Pick leaves in the morning once the dew has dried.
- Avoid rinsing the leaves as moisture can lead to mold.
- Dry the leaves by hanging them in small bunches upside down in a warm, dry area away from direct sunlight or spread them on a screen in a cool, dry place.
- Drying can take a week or more, depending on humidity. Once dry, strip the leaves from the stems and store them in an airtight glass jar in a dark, cool spot.
How to Make Herbal Tea:
Heat water to just below boiling and add 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of dried herbs per cup of water to your teapot. Steep for 3-5 minutes, depending on your taste preference. As herb teas are naturally light, rely on taste rather than color to gauge readiness. Remember, overbrewing can result in bitterness.
By nurturing your own herbal tea Tower Garden, you’re embarking on a journey of flavor, health, and personal satisfaction. Enjoy the process and the delightful cups of tea that await!
By nurturing your own herbal tea Tower Garden, you’re embarking on a journey of flavor, health, and personal satisfaction. Enjoy the process and the delightful cups of tea that await!
