It’s true that consuming some herbs in the form of an infusion can have significant health benefits, but some of us just like herbal tea for the taste…period! So if you are growing tea herbs which are the tastiest?
Pineapple sage. This is a lesser-known herb for most people, but herbal tea drinkers will recognize it instantly. It has a soft, sweet pineapple fragrance and taste. A little honey and fresh lime or lemon juice will make it even more palatable, particularly to non-tea drinkers. Pineapple sage is a perennial, but a relatively tender one, so mulch it heavily if you live in an area that is subject to frosts during winter.
Peppermint. Perhaps the best thing about peppermint is that it reminds us so strongly of sweet things without actually containing any sugar! Peppermint is a great herb for an everyday tea. Just submerge ¼ cup of fresh-picked leaves in a cup of boiling water and allow it to steep for 5-10 minutes (cover it while it’s steeping to prevent steam escaping). Peppermint grows like a weed, so you won’t find it difficult to keep a steady supply on hand!
Lemongrass. There are a number of herbs that have a lemon or citrus taste, but lemongrass is perhaps the best of them. It’s the stalks that are used to make tea, but be sure to strip off the outer couple of layers as these are too bitter. Once the outer layers are stripped, cut the stalk into roughly 4-inch sections. Lemongrass has a strong flavor, so start out with 2-3 stalk sections per pot of tea and increase the amount if you find it’s not strong enough for you. You can grow lemongrass from fresh stalks of it bought from your local Asian market (allow them to sit in a dish of water until they get roots and new growth, then plant). When growing lemongrass, remember that it’s a tropical plant, so give it a hot environment and plenty of water.
Lemon basil. Another citrus flavoured herb, but here the lemon is balanced by the earthy, buttery underlying basil flavor. This is a really tasty tea and one to surprise your friends with – they won’t know what they’re drinking…but they’ll like it! Like any basil, lemon basil is an annual but is pretty easy to grow. It needs warm air, warm earth, plenty of sun and soil that drains quickly. Indoors, it’ll require artificial light to grow properly. Be very careful not to over-water it; the soil should have gone from dark (wet) all the way to light (dry) before you water again.
There are certainly other tasty herb teas, but the four listed here are perhaps the most instantly likeable. Others can be more of an ‘acquired taste’! Don’t forget that you can mix and match herbs to create your own blends – mint and lemon flavors are almost always welcome in combinations with other more floral herbs.
I offer a Free 10 day e-course on herb growing. You can sign up here: visit www.herbgrowingcenter.com
Arthur McLay is a herb grower enthusiast and author of the book “The Secrets of Herb Growing”. To discover more secrets about growing tea herbs, visit www.herbgrowingcenter.com
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