Suggestions for excess Lemon Balm?
I tried my hand at creating a little medicinal herb garden this year. Some did better than others and I learned a ton. However my lemon balm went crazy and I really want to harvest it before our first frost. But I'm new as to what to do with this heavenly smelling herb. Do you all have any favorite recipes?
Comments
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@Jenny Talbott welcome to TGN, glad to have you here. Yep, some herbs can be hit and miss. Lemon balm for me has been productive. I've picked it for tea and dried and bagged it. Lasts long time. Given starts to friends to propagate, goes well.
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@Jenny Talbott Lemon balm is a good medicinal herb for cold sores. A salve is the best way to use it for this purpose. Works as well as any of the pharmaceutical products at reducing the spread of a cold sore and the duration of the outbreak. You could tincture it as well but the alcohol will burn if you put it on the cold sore.
As a tea it is good for digestion. Helpful with colic. And it tastes wonderful. It is a good herb to add to combinations to make less palatable herbs easier to take.
This is a link to some of the uses. https://www.peacehealth.org/medical-topics/id/hn-2121004#:~:text=Lemon%20balm%2C%20with%20its%20antiviral,the%20healing%20of%20cold%20sores.
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Love lemon balm! I dry for teas, but also use fresh picked for tinctures (good for calming, and for sleep.)
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I like it in teas, for fish (I am working on a Lemon Balm pesto), almost anything that tastes good with lemon and/or mint.
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@jodienancarrow, @torey, @Mary Linda Bittle, @Lisa K Thank you for your suggestions. I've got so much of this herb I just might be able to try all of them out.😁
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@Jenny Talbott you are welcome and enjoy creating!
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I also love lemon balm. I tried to grow it this year, but only got what I would call a "start"' I use it in medicinal creams and salves.
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I was sitting outside enjoying a fine Sept. sunset a couple days ago when the mosquitoes zeroed in on me in force. Noticed my stand of lemon balm not far away and remembered reading that it repelled the critters, So I took a handful, rubbed it over my arms, back of my neck, shoulders and face. It smelled wonderful, and though I stayed out for another hour or so I did not notice another mosquito.
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@MaryRowe Thank you for mentioning that. I'll have to do that for my 7yo daughter next time she goes outside to play. They are always biting her like he's a buffet, poor thing. And they were really bad this year, and still are here in SC. My usual homemade repellent didn't seem to phase them at all.
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Lemon balm grew and grew and grew in my garden. I love the smell. I gave it away and still it grew. We removed some of it and still it grew. I might plant it in an underground container next time though. The scent is amazing. I am grateful to know that it repels mosquitos because they eat me for dinner.
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Here's some more information on lemon balm https://youtu.be/nTbzQfiKHTk
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Rosemary Gladstar uses it in a headache tea recipe. Lemon balm is a relaxing tea.
It is combined with chamomile & basil. It is so very sweet & a lovely tea. One of my favorites!
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I have used it personally for migraines in tea and tincture and it works amazingly. It soothes the nausea I sometimes feel and also relieves the pain.
I have used it for cold sores, both as a salve and tincture (yes, it stings a bit but it works fast!)
I love it in tea blends, I combine it in tincture blends that need a little help for palatability and I love it as a simple ice tea in summer.
I need to get out and harvest again as we are going to be cooling down in the next few weeks.
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Wow! What a great amount of information. If memory is serving me correctly, one caution of lemon balm is that it is similar to the pheromones of the queen bee of some variety of bees and can draw the workers.
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I dry mine by hanging it to air dry and then strip the leaves from the stem and store it to use for tea. Sometimes I add lavendar for a lovely flavor combination. I find that I sleep well when I drink it before bed.
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Love reading all the suggestions/uses as well.
if one is so inclined, making essential oil is an option. you need a LOT of herb, so it would help solve the issue of having too much. Initial set-up would be an investment of time, money, & space. But once you’ve done it, you could use it for rosemary, pine, etc.
It would also have a long shelf life if kept cool & out of sun. That way it would also be in a form to use topically or internally.
Just thought I’d mention it because I know this community is adventurous,curious, & courageous.
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Tea and infusions are the only way I have used lemon balm. One thing to remember with lemon balm specific, please remember it interacts with the synthroid medication for hypothyroidism, so please do not let these folks use it.
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Good point @ltwickey. Conversely, lemon balm may help those who suffer from hyperthyroidsim.
Lemon Balm may also increase the hypnotic effects of pentobarbitol and may enhance the therapeutic and adverse effects of some herbs such as calamus, California poppy, catnip, Jamaican dogwood, hops, kava, St. John's wort, skullcap, valerian, yerba mansa and others. May increase the effects of ehtanol.
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Love to make a tea with mine, fresh or dried. Spearmint, chocolate mint, and lemon balm in equal portions. So lovely and relaxing, either hot or iced. A little stevia is nice in it, too. I also like to make infused oil with the lemon balm. Lemon balm is reported to have anti-aging properties, and who doesn't like that!
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Thank you all for your ways you use Lemon Balm, this is so helpful.
@ltwickey Thank you! I'm on synthroid medication. So I will be extra careful.
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It lowers thyroid function so don't take it everyday unless you have an over active thyroid.
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I have lemon balm on my deck garden. I have used it fresh and dried in teas, although it is more potent and aromatic when fresh.
I made a lemon balm tincture that I add to evening tea, or take a dropper before bed to calm my mind.
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Beautiful pictures on that site. I enjoy Lemon Balm as a tea which I drink a few times a day or as needed for a cheering, calming drink.
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Do you make essential oils yourself? If so, can you recommend an inexpensive, small scale distillation setup? I am interested in an all glass setup without plastic or metal parts.
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@Cornelius , @Wendy, @flowerpower thank you for her helpful recommendations.
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@flowerpower I have never made essential oils myself because of the high amount of plant material required for most oils. But I have done some research because I am very fond of the conifer oils and have thought about making them. The cost of the still has been a deterrent.
Following are a couple of Canadian links.
Aside from the clamps holding things together, this still seems to be all glass, and much less expensive than other ones that I have seen. https://www.amazon.ca/Essential-Distillation-Apparatus-Distiller-Glassware/dp/B07W6Q28FS/ref=asc_df_B07W6Q28FS/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=336230889732&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=9968854574775842650&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001441&hvtargid=pla-910076014551&psc=1
This one also seems to be all glass and a bit bigger but at a bit higher cost. https://www.heartmagic.com/EssentialDistiller.html
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Great thread. I just added Lemon balm to my herbs I grow. So great input. Thank you
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I will try that as a tea. Do you drink it sweetened?
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Like everyone else😀I use it in teas, salves, tincture, and glycerites. Also as a hydrosol as this uses a lot of it
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We use it for tea, dried and ground as a seasoning, and lip balm.
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