A tea garden is a delightful hobby that can complement the rest of an herb garden. A tea garden will provide you with the joy of fresh herbal teas, more properly known as herbal infusions or tisanes. You can drink a single herbal tea on its own, or you can try mixing together 2 or 3 different complementary herbal flavors. For a more flavorful caffeinated tea, try mixing 1 or 2 herbs from your garden in with your favorite loose-leaf black or green tea.
EditSteps
EditCreating the Tea Garden
- Select part of an existing herb garden to cultivate tea in. If you already have a small herb garden, or even a large planter in which you're growing herbs, set aside part of this as a tea garden. Pick any weeds out of the garden, and use a small shovel or spade to turn over the top several inches of soil.
- You can grow herbs for tea in relatively little space. If you choose to only include 1 or 2 tea herbs in your garden, you will need as little as of space.
- Build a herb garden box if you don't already have an herb garden. If you prefer to build your own garden box, you can make a rudimentary one by nailing 4 planks into a square shape. Most herbs grow best in full sun to partial shade, so position your garden box in an area that is mostly exposed and will receive sun throughout the growing season.[1]
- Keep in mind that some herbs—like lemon verbena and peppermint—do better in a garden box or a pot than an open garden. If you have the time and inclination, you could grow tea herbs in an existing herb garden, and build a garden box on the side.
- If this style of garden box doesn't appeal to you, there are several other ways to build a small garden box.
- Prepare the soil in the garden or planter. Prepare the soil or pot as you would do normally for planting herbs or flowers. Most types of tea herb will thrive in fertile, well-drained soil. You can purchase fertilized soil at a garden supply center, or add your own compost to enrich the soil in your garden.[2]
- As your tea herbs grow, fertilize them
- As your herbs grow and eventually mature or flower, you’ll need to keep the garden free of weeds. If you notice any plants growing that are not your selected types of herb, pull them out and discard the weeds.
EditChoosing Your Herbs
- Select a variety of complementary herbs for tea. Quite a few herbs and flowers are suitable for making herbal teas. Your choice is dependent on what flavors you like the most and what will grow best for you. If space in your garden is limited, try planting complementary flavors in the same garden patch. Complementary herb flavors include:[3]
- Different varieties of mint paired with one another.
- Bee balm and lemon balm.
- English lavender and lemon verbena.
- Plant peppermint leaves. Peppermint tea is a perennial favorite for many people. Peppermint is generally easy to grow and enjoys semi-shaded spots. Keep mint out of full sun, though, or it may begin to wilt. The herb can quickly spread from one part of a garden to another, so unless you want it escaping across the herb garden, keep it pot-bound.[4]
- Peppermint tea is made from the leaves of the peppermint plant. The taste of peppermint is uplifting and cleansing, and can help settle an upset stomach.
- Consider planting lavender. Lavender leaves are a delightful, softly fragrant tisane that are perfect for making a soothing cup of tea. Lavender grows well when placed in in full sun. Plant your lavender in well-drained soil. It prefers not to be over-watered, so only water the lavender when its soil is completely dry.[5]
- Lavender buds and flowers are both used for tea.
- Similarly to peppermint tea, lavender tea is recommended for reducing tension in your body and soothing headaches.
- Grow lemon verbena. As the name indicates, lemon verbena packs a refreshing and tangy lemony taste in its easy-to-grow leaves. It needs full sun and will not tolerate harsh winters, so keep it pot-bound and indoors if the region you live in has cold winters. The leaves are used for tea.[6]
- Lemon verbena grows quickly during warm summer months, so you’ll be able to collect multiple harvests.
- Cultivate rose hips. Rose hips are the seed cases that the rose flower grows out of. They are extremely high in vitamin C and consequently offer the health benefits that the vitamin provides. Rose hips will form once the rose bush goes to seed. The rose hips should be deep orange-red before harvesting.[7]
- Rinse the rose hips to remove clinging soil before steeping them in hot water.
- Plant bergamot. Bergamot is a popular choice for herbal teas because it carries a touch of orange flavor. The plant produces gorgeous bright red, violet, or pink flowers and grows best in full sun or semi-shade. The herb thrives in full sun to partial shade, and does best when left relatively dry. Bergamot also has mild health benefits: it acts as a digestive and diuretic, and can reduce a mild headache.[8]
- Both the leaves and flowers of bergamot are suitable for steeping.
- Grow chamomile. Chamomile is one of the more common herbs used in teas. It is a delightful apple-scented herb, which is traditionally used to induce calm and sleep. Chamomile tolerates full sun to semi-shade. Chamomile flowers are easily grown from seeds. The flowers are the preferred part for making the tea.[9]
- Chamomile is visually appealing as well. It makes a gorgeous but delicate lawn feature with small daisy-like flowers.
EditSelecting Less Common Herbs for Tea
- Plant cilantro. Cilantro, also known as coriander, is used more frequently in cooking food than in making teas. However, coriander is suitable for herbal tea and makes a tea which tastes similarly to Lady Grey tea. This tea carries a spicy and acidic flavor with strong citrus undertones. The leaves are used for tea.[10]
- Cilantro thrives in full sun to semi-shade and grows best in a contained pot or small, enclosed garden. Cilantro will even grow well in a small pot placed on your windowsill.
- Grow thyme. Thyme is considered to be a good tea for soothing stomach troubles and sore throats. It is tolerant of full sun and semi-shade and is an ideal container herb. Use the leaves for tea, but if flowers are present, you can add these to the tea as well. If you'd like to pair the herb with another in your tea, try combining it with mint.[11]
- The flavor of thyme in tea is spicy and may be an acquired taste. Try a little bit first before cutting too much herb for your tea!
- Unlike other herbs, thyme is best grown from cuttings or by dividing mature thyme plants in 2. It also prefers poor soil with little water, so may be best grown in its own small planter.
- Raise violets. If you love the smell of violets, violet tea will probably be a new favorite. Violet is also an excellent source of vitamins A and C. Violets are considered to be soothing and refreshing and are a good tonic after winter. The dried leaves and flowers are suitable for steeping.[12]
- Violets prefer shady growing areas and are easy planted in pots if desired. Since most other tea herbs prefer full sun, plan to grow violets in a separate planting container.
- Plant rosemary. Although it's typically used in savory dishes, rosemary also makes an excellent herbal tea. If the taste of rosemary by itself is too strong in a tea, add a few drops of honey and a squeeze of lemon juice.[13] The plant prefers strong full sun but will tolerate light shade, and requires well-drained soil.
- The flavor of rosemary also pairs well in tea with lemon verbena.
- Cultivate stevia. Although best known as an artificial sweetener, stevia is a safe and pleasant-tasting herb to make tea with. Stevia handles colder weather well, and can be grown in outdoor gardens and planters.[14]
- Stevia leaves are naturally sweet and their sweetness can be concentrated by drying or dehydrating them.
EditMaking Fresh Herbal Tea
- Pick the leaves or flowers of the herb. The number of leaves, buds, or flowers that you pick will depend on how potent you want your herbal tea to be, and on how much tea you plan to make. 2 or 3 teaspoons of leaves will make a single cup, but you may need to pick 6-8 teaspoons for a full pot of tea.[15]
- Bruise the picked leaves by rubbing them together. Take each leaf between your thumb and index finger and lightly crush and roll the leaf around. These will provide flavor to the tea; non-bruised leaves will produce a much weaker herbal tea, even when steeped or several minutes.[16]
- "Bruising" the herbal tea leaves will release their essential oils.
- Dry your herbs to preserve the leaves. If desired, you can dry your herbs. Cut leaves off the bottom of the herb (from the first three or four inches). Then, hang them upside down until they dry. It can take a few days to a week.
- When making tea from dried herbs, reduce the quantity of herbs by half to three-quarters of the amount of fresh herb you would use.
- Add the herbs to a teapot or place them directly into a mug. For each of tea, add approximately 2 teaspoons of fresh leaves and/or flowers.[17]
- Slice rose hips in half before adding.
- Steep the herbal tea in boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Herbal tea typically needs to steep for longer than black, green, or white tea. This will ensure that the flavors are released and the full benefits of the herb's or flower's qualities are available. Pour the boiling water over the herb leaves in a teapot, cover, and let it steep.[18]
- You can keep herbal tea in the fridge for about 2 days. However, the tea may lose some of its flavor if stored.
EditTips
- Unless the beverage made uses the tea plant, Camellia sinensis, it is technically not a tea but an "herbal infusion."
EditWarnings
- Lemon balm, (not to be confused with lemon verbena), and peppermint will take over the garden if given the opportunity. Keep them pot-bound if this is a concern for you.
- If you are allergic to ragwort, it may be a good idea to avoid chamomile tea, as a similar allergic reaction can occur.
- Do not use herbs or flowers that have pesticide residues. When growing, use natural pest reduction methods. If you obtain your leaves and flowers from elsewhere, ask the gardeners if pesticides were used before ingesting.
EditRelated wikiHows
- Plant a Medicinal Herb Garden
- Use Stevia
- Grow Cilantro
- Grow Herb Gardens from Seed
- Store Herbs
- Grow an Herb Garden Indoors Year Round
- Harvest Lavender
- Grow Roses
- Make Tea With More Flavor
- Make English Tea
- Make Flower Tea
EditSources and Citations
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