Lemon Balm & Other Useful Herbs

Lemon Balm

• Lemon balm is native to western Asia and has been cultivated since ancient times in southern Europe. It can be found in gardens and in the wild. It's a bushy perennial that grows 1 to 3 feet tall, with hairy leaves, a lovely lemony smell and somewhat bitter taste. It's useful as a soothing, pleasant tasting tea and is known for its calming properties.

Wood Betony and Peppermint

• When taken in a tea or capsule form, wood betony has sedative properties that are good for neuralgic pain, as in headaches. It's also called Bishop's Wort and is native to the British Isles, temperate Europe and Algeria. It's a slightly hairy perennial that grows to 2 feet high and was used in ancient times as a cure all. It has a bitter, salty taste.

  Peppermint is used in aromatherapy and as a tea, oil and extract. It is used as a body cleanser and helps relaxation. It can be used for all manner of aches and pains. It's a hybrid of winter mint and spearmint and is cultivated in temperate areas. It's an erect or spreading perennial that can grow from 1 to 3 feet high. It can sometimes be invasive in the garden.

Comfrey Leaf

• Comfrey leaf and root are used in tea, compresses, poultices and tinctures. Comfrey is an astringent that is good for soothing cold symptoms and inflammation of the bowel and the lungs. It also helps stop external and internal bleeding. Its growth ranges from the British Isles to Siberia and south to Spain and Turkey. It's a hairy perennial plant that grows 1 to 4 feet high and has soft leaves and yellow, pink or purple flowers. The young shoots are also eaten as greens.

Elecampane

• Elecampane is also native to the British Isles, northern Asia and Japan. It's also been cultivated in the eastern United States where it's used as a medicinal plant. It's a perennial that can grow to 10 feet tall, with a hairy stem and soft leaves. The root has a strong camphor odor and was used as a medicine by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Elecampane is used to lessen chronic respiratory congestion and inflammation, is good for cold and flu as well as bronchial and asthmatic congestion, and clears the body of excess mucus.

Juniper Berries

• Juniper berries are the fruits of the common juniper, a tree found in Europe, temperate Asia, northern Africa and North America. The plant can range in size from a low spreading shrub to a 20-foot tree. The berries are aromatic and have a sweet turpentine flavor and bitter aftertaste. Available in tea, oil and capsules, the berries have healing properties that remove acid and toxic wastes from the body and help dissolve kidney stones or prostrate sediment. Juniper berries can also act as part of adrenal stimulation and in the treatment of water retention, but they should not be used during pregnancy or kidney disease.