Easily Dry & Make Lemon Balm Tea (Superb Benefits)

Lemon Balm tea makes a healthy loose leaf tea because Lemon Balm includes antioxidants and vitamins that support your overall health. This makes it a good plant to consume. We pick our leaves from the small bush in our farm garden. While the lemon balm plant is only in its second year since starting it from seed, it has given us much to harvest and dry for lemon balm tea!

Lemon Balm Plant

We started our lemon balm plant from seed last year and up came a teeny tiny plant that went completely unnoticed. Now in its second year, it peaked up early spring and is a big, healthy and thriving plant.

Growing Lemon Balm

Seeds

To grow your own Lemon Balm is very easy. We purchased our seeds from Baker Creek and directly planted them into our garden around spring. A small plant grew the first year, but it is only now in the second year that we are harvesting leaves.

Growing

It is superb grows and does not require much help. You can, however, help the plant to bush by punching leaves off. Everywhere you pinch a leaf, the plant will split and produce two. The more you pick, the more grows! This is one of God’s gifts that leave me in awe. What a present – when you can take and still receive more and more with each time you take.

Invasive Nature – but not Invasive

Lemon Balm is not an invasive plant, but its seed does spread like all plants. Pull out any new seedlings that immerse in the new year when you do not want them growing. Alternatively, you can stop the plant from scattering its seed by picking the flowers when it dies.

Picking Lemon Balm Leaf

Picking the leaves from the plant is simple. I use my nail to pinch the stem attached to the leaf about 1/8″ below the leaf. The stems are soft and pinch easily.

Experts would say to pick the younger leaves because they will hold the most flavour. This is true, and young leaves tend to hold the most taste and benefit when they are young and tender. However, I do not leave the bigger leaves behind. Perhaps because our plant is still relatively small and I have to take all I can get.

Drying Lemon Balm

We dry our Lemon Balm leaves in the oven at the lowest temperature (170F for our oven) for about 3-4 hours until the leave are crisp.

I check them often and test the leaves until they crumble easily in between my fingers. Then I know they are completely dry.

Once dried, we let the leaves rest on the counter until cool. Thereafter, I store in them in Mason Jars. We buy them in bulk from Uline.

Lemon Balm Tea Benefits

In my research, I have learned that the lemon balm plant has many benefits. Therefore, consuming the plant in a tea form is a great way to add these nutrients to your body. According to my studies, some of the benefits of lemon balm tea include:

• aids irritability and boosts mood
• decrease anxiety and stress
• supports cognitive health
• help increase appetite
• calm the nervous system
• decrease nausea
• aid indigestion and heartburn
• lessen the pain of menstrual cramps
• help with sleep
• reduces inflammation and swelling

Make your Own Lemon Balm Tea

I’m constantly trying out new loose leaf combinations that taste good. I also consider which ingredients would compliment one another in health benefits. This is my most recent Lemon Balm tea recipe. If you try it out, please leave a rating and comment to let me know if you enjoyed it or what else you would be paid with it. You can also try my other tea recipes: Dandelion Tea and Nettle Leaf Tea.

Watch Picking, Drying and Making Lemon Balm Tea

This is a step-by-step tutorial to pick, dry and preserve Lemon Balm leaves to make Lemon Balm tea.

Pin this Lemon Balm Tea Recipe