The Best Herbs for Growing Your Own Herbal Tea

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Herbs are a great addition to any garden because you can use them in so many different ways and because many of them are easy to grow and they can tolerate poor soil conditions better than many vegetable plants can. And besides using them for cooking, one of my favorite ways to use the herbs from my garden is to use them for making herbal teas. (And I know that herbs aren't technically tea because they aren't from the tea plant, but for the sake of simplicity I'm going to call them herbal tea anyways.) I decided to put together a list of what I consider to be some of the best herbs for growing your own herbal tea in your garden, and these herbs are ones that are pretty easy to grow in most climates, ones that have a pleasant taste, and ones that are accessible at most garden centers or greenhouses.

Benefits of Growing Your Own Herbs for Tea

One of the benefits of growing your own herbs is that you can have the freshest herbs possible. You can use the herbs straight out of the garden or you can dry them properly to save them for later. When you buy herbal teas from the store the herbs will usually be older by the time the herbs make it from being harvested in the field through all of the different steps that it takes to get them onto the store shelves, but when you grow your own herbs you could potentially make an herbal tea the same day you harvest the herbs from your garden. Or, if you are drying your herbs, you could make a tea within a few weeks or months of harvesting the herbs. The fresher herbs will typically have a better flavor and could even have more beneficial properties for supporting health and wellness, too.

Another benefit of including herbs for tea in your garden is that it is another way that you can save a lot of money on herbal teas, especially if you grow perennial herbs that you buy once and then keep harvesting from year after year. Buying herbal teas in little packets from the store is great for occasional use or if there is a specific blend of herbs that you really like or that would be hard to find elsewhere, but for herbs that you want to use on a regular basis those little tea bags can add up pretty quickly.

When I first started drinking herbal teas I bought store bought tea bags, but then once I realized how much money I could save by buying loose herbs instead I only rarely use pre-made tea bags anymore. Buying herbs in bulk and using a reusable tea filter is a great way to save money on herbal tea, and if you want to save even more money then growing some of your own herbs can cut down the cost even more.

And another benefit of growing your own is that you have control over the quality of the herbs. You know how they were grown and you know what type of fertilizer was used and whether or not any sprays were used, etc. You also know how the herbs were harvested and processed. Of course, it would take a lot of herb plants to grow enough that you didn't need to buy any at a store at all, but it's nice to be able to grow some herbs that are really high quality and also either very inexpensive or even free if you are growing perennial herbs.

Different Benefits of These Herbs

Another thing to consider when deciding to add herbs to your garden is the reason why you want to use them. If you are growing herbs purely for the flavor than that would be the most important deciding factor in which herbs you would choose. If you want to grow the herbs for the health supporting properties of the herbs, though, then of course you would want to learn more about the herbs and some of the different ways that you can use them.

I've given a very brief overview of just a couple of the common uses of these herbs in the list below, but there so many ways that you can use each of these herbs and so many properties that each of them has. If you want to learn more I recommend doing some more research about these herbs and checking out some good herbal websites and books. I'll list a few that I typically use for learning more about herbs here:

• Herbs with Rosalee (website)
• Homegrown Herbalist (website and also YouTube channel)
• The Honeystead (YouTube channel)
• Homesteading Family
• Commonwealth Holistic Herbalism (website)
• Herbal Remedies Handbook (book)
• Prepper's Natural Medicine (book) (Note: the Amazon listing says "illustrated," but the copy I have is not illustrated.)

While I don't necessarily agree with 100% of all of the viewpoints or teachings of all of these different books and sites, there is some great information about herbs in them, and you if you are looking for a specific herbs you can search for those and find a lot of helpful knowledge about the herbs as well as how to use them. Some of the information I am including in this article is information I learned from these books, videos, and websites. Since I have been learning about herbs for a little while now, I don't always remember exactly where I learned information from, but these sources listed above are some of the ones I have used myself to learn more about herbs.

Important Information

Before moving on to the list of herbs it's important to state first that not all herbs are safe for everyone to use, so it's always wise to do some research and/or check with a professional before trying a new herb, especially if you are taking any medications or have any health conditions, or if you are pregnant or nursing. Some herbs aren't safe for those situations, so if any of those things apply to you it's important to check first to see if a new herb is safe for you to use. It's also important to check to see if herbs are safe for children to consume, too, if you have children and want to give any herbs to them.

Generally speaking, there's a difference between having a cup of tea with a small amount of an herb and having a large amount of an herb that you are using on a regular basis, but it's still best to do some research and check to make sure an herb is safe for you to use if any of the above situations apply to you. And, of course, I'm not a health professional, so any information about the health benefits of any of these herbs is for informational purposes only and not medical advice. I've included a couple of contraindications that I am aware of for the herbs below, but there may be others as well, so it's definitely a good idea to do some research before trying a new herb, especially if you want to start using it on a regular basis.

Important Information for Pregnancy

I've seen some conflicting information online for whether or not some of these herbs are safe for pregnancy and even for nursing. Some lists of pregnancy-safe herbs include some of these, and some say they should be avoided. Some herbs are considered potentially unsafe because it's possible they could cause uterine contractions, and some herbs are considered unsafe more because there just isn't enough information or evidence to prove that they are safe. So if you are a pregnant or nursing mother I would recommend doing some more research about these herbs and talking with your doctor or midwife.

Ok, now that those disclaimers are out of the way, let's move onto talking about the herbs themselves!

The Best Herbs for Growing Your Own Herbal Tea

The word "best" is subjective, of course, but these are some of the herbs that I consider to be the best ones to grow for herbal teas because they are herbs that are pretty easy to grow, they taste good, and most of them are also ones that you can find at local greenhouses and garden centers. I've included the common names as well as the Latin names of these herbs below because you might find either or both of the names on the labels when you are buying seedlings or seeds, and the Latin name is a good way to make sure you are buying the correct herb because herbs can sometimes be referred to by different common names. I've also included some information about the flavor of each plant and my experience with growing them in my garden.

Peppermint (Mentha x piperita)

Peppermint is a very popular herb for herbal tea, and it's one that you can almost always find in the tea aisle at any grocery store. It's also an herb that you could probably find at any garden center if you want to buy seedlings to grow in your own garden. I've heard many people say that peppermint can really spread and take over your garden and that it can sometimes be a good idea to plant it in a container so you don't have to worry about it spreading. I haven't personally found that to be a problem for my garden, so I've just planted straight into in the ground.

Peppermint is an herb that is supposed to be easy to grow, but I need to try to find the right place in my garden for it. The place where I've grown it in the past has been a shadier spot, and it has survived there, but it hasn't ever thrived, so I think I need to try to find a different spot for it this year so I can have a better harvest of peppermint.

Peppermint has that classic refreshing minty flavor that pretty much everyone is familiar with, but it doesn't have any of the artificial peppermint flavor you might find in store bought candies and other things. It can be quite strong actually, and I find that a little bit of it goes a long way when you are adding peppermint to your tea. You really don't need much of it to get that minty flavor. Some of the most common uses for peppermint are for digestive and for respiratory support, and the fact that it is a good-tasting herb make it a pleasant herb to drink for helping with these things, too.

There are other varieties of mint that you can grow, too, including spearmint, chocolate mint, and apple mint. They all have a minty taste, but each of them has subtle differences in flavor. The chocolate mint tastes very similar to peppermint, at least in my opinion, and the apple mint is still minty but with a slightly different flavor that's hard to describe. One of my favorite homesteading YouTube channels, More Than Farmers, shows growing, harvesting, and drinking apple mint tea on some of their videos.

I've grown each of these types of mint in my garden expect for spearmint, but I think I might try to add that one to my garden soon. I've heard that spearmint it a bit milder in flavor than peppermint, though. Spearmint also has some different properties than peppermint, too, so that would be another one to research more if you are interested in the health-supporting properties of spearmint.

I've read that peppermint can sometimes make heartburn symptoms worse, so that's something to be aware of if that might apply to you and to pay attention to whether it has a negative effect on you when you drink peppermint tea.

Chamomile (Matricaria recutita, Chamomilla recutita, or Chamaemelum nobile)

Chamomile makes for a delicious tea by itself, but it can also be a great herb to add to other types of herbal teas, too. One things I've noticed, though, is that chamomile can tend to taste a bit bitter if you let it steep too long, so that's something to watch out for when you are making chamomile tea. You can also add some sweetener to help to counteract this bitterness if you are adding chamomile to a tea blend with other herbs that you want to be able to steep for a longer time.

The little white flowers with yellow center that chamomile has are a pretty addition to the garden, and it's usually easy to find chamomile seedlings at many garden centers, too. You can also start chamomile plants from seed, but in my experience it can be a bit difficult to get the tiny seeds to germinate well. The benefit of growing chamomile from seed, though, is that you can grow more plants for less money than if you buy seedlings.

There are two different types of chamomile: Roman chamomile and German chamomile. Roman chamomile is a perennial, so it will come back year after year. It is a lower growing plant with smaller flowers, but the fact that you don't have to plant it each year is a bonus. German chamomile is a bigger plant with larger flowers, but it is an annual, so unless it reseeds itself you will have to get new German chamomile plants each season.

One challenge with growing chamomile is that it can be hard to grow enough of the little flowers to have a decent harvest of them for making your own tea. Unless you grow several chamomile plants you might end up with just a handful of flowers that would be enough to make small amount of chamomile tea. Chamomile is still a pretty plant to grow in the garden, though, and even a small harvest of flowers can enhance the flavor of other herbs in tea blends.

Chamomile is best known as a soothing, calming herb that is perfect for relaxing evening tea blends, but I've also found that it's one that I can drink in the morning, too, without getting too drowsy. Chamomile tea is also commonly used to help with digestion and for its anti-inflammatory properties.

As I learned from watching some videos about herbs on The Honeystead channel, chamomile is a member of the Asteraceae family (which includes some common allergens), so if you tend to have bad allergies you might want to be cautious with chamomile because there's a chance that you could react to chamomile, too.

Lemon Verbena (Lippia citriodora or Aloysia citriodora)

Lemon Verbena has an incredible scent to it that is fresh and lemon-y, and the flavor is a delicious lemon taste. I love adding lemon verbena to my herbal teas because it adds such a pleasant flavor to the tea. Lemon verbena is a plant that I have never been able to find seeds for to try to grow at home, but I've been able to find seedlings at a local garden center. This plant might not be quite as common as some of the others in this list, but if you are able to find it I highly recommend it for both its scent and its flavor.

Lemon verbena can be grown as an annual or as a perennial depending on your growing zone. If you have really cold winters it might not survive the winter or if you have mildly cold winters you might have to mulch it well to protect it. I'm in gardening zone 6A, and I've had lemon verbena survive the winter in a milder season, but I think it might have died this past winter when it was colder than usual. If you don't want to worry about it being too cold over the winter, another option would be to grow your lemon verbena outside in a pot and then bring it inside during the winter months.

Lemon verbena isn't a very common herb for herbal teas, and it's one you probably won't find at a store unless it is in a blend with other more common herbs. But lemon verbena is such a delicious herb to add to any herbal tea blend and it will really brighten up the flavor of other greener "healthier" tasting herbs you might be drinking for their health benefits.

According to the Herbal Remedies Handbook, lemon verbena has some relaxing properties to it and it can also help with digestion and calming the stomach. Even if it didn't have any health benefits, though, this herb is one that I would want to include in my garden just for it's delightful scent and flavor.

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)

Just like lemon verbena, lemon balm has an amazing lemon scent, and I love just rubbing the leaves through my fingers and smelling it. The flavor of lemon balm is more subtle than lemon verbena, though. The lemon scent is still there, but it isn't as strong as the lemon verbena is. Lemon balm is still a very pleasant tasting tea, though, and it may be a more accessible herb to grow because it may be easier to find lemon balm seedlings at local garden centers.

Lemon balm is also a perennial herb, so once you plant it you won't have to worry about adding it to your garden each year. It can also handle colder winter temperatures than lemon verbena can, so it doesn't require any maintenance over the winter other than maybe adding a layer of mulch over it to protect it if you have harsh winters. Lemon balm is an herb that can spread in your garden over time, so that's something to keep in mind when you are deciding where to plant it.

Lemon balm is another relaxing, soothing herb that can also help to support digestion. I find it interesting that most of the herbs on this list are ones that have soothing properties that are commonly used for helping with digestion and that also have pleasant flavors. That seems to be a common theme for these popular tea herbs. Or course they have other properties, too, but those are some of the most common ones.

I've seen some herbal sources say that lemon balm might not be a good herb for people who have hypothyroid issues, but then there are some sources that don't mention any contraindications for the thyroid, so that would be another thing to do some more research about and to be cautious about if that applies to you.

Catnip (Nepeta Cataria)

If you're wondering if this the same catnip that cats go crazy for, it is! What's interesting, though, is that catnip has the opposite effect on most people and it tends to have more of a soothing effect. Catnip is yet another herb that is often used for soothing the digestive system and for it's relaxing properties. The Honeystead YouTube channel mentions catnip in several of their herbal videos and includes it in several of their tea-blending videos, too.

Catnip is an herb that I've found to be easy to grow in my garden, and it is able to grow even in areas with poor soil conditions. It will do better in areas with better soil, of course, but I've found that it is hardier than some other plants I've grown. It is a perennial herb that will come back year after year, and it can also spread in your garden like some of the other herbs on this list. Catnip is the herb that is in the picture at the top of this page, and I took the picture when the catnip was just starting to regrow after the winter time.

The flavor of catnip is a unique flavor that is slightly minty but with some other flavor undertones that are hard to describe. Of all of the herbs on this list I think that the flavor of catnip is probably my least favorite just by itself. It isn't really a bad tasting herb, but I personally don't think it tastes as good as the others on this list. It's a good herb for blending with some other herbs, though, and it's one that I like to include in my garden for it's health-supporting properties and because it has grown well for me the past couple of years.

Tulsi (aka Holy Basil or temperate tulsi) (Ocimum africanum)

There are several different varieties of tulsi, but the one that I grow in my garden is referred to as temperate tulsi. This type of tulsi is typically easier to grow than the other more tropical varieties of tulsi, so it's better suited for many North American gardens (or for gardens in similar climates). It has a very unique scent and flavor. It's hard to describe, but I personally think it has a slight bit of a bubblegum scent to it. The flavor is very slightly reminiscent of bubblegum but with a spicy note to it, and a unique flavor that is hard to put into words.

Tulsi is an annual herb, but I've found it to be fairly easy to start from seed to grow my own. It might be possible to find tulsi seedlings at a local garden center, though. I've been growing my own from seed at home for the past couple of years, so I found it easier and more cost effective to get a $3 packet of seeds and grow several plants to have enough for making tea. I had bought tulsi tea in the past, but after watching some videos about growing and using tulsi on The Honeystead channel I was inspired to try growing my own tulsi plants in my garden the past couple of years.

You could make a tea with just tulsi by itself, but I think it works really well to use it to add some flavor to other herbs for herbal teas, too. If you had a "green" tasting herb like nettle leaf or red raspberry leaf that you didn't enjoy the flavor of by itself, for example, tulsi would add a nice flavor that will blend with those other herbs and help to give them a better flavor than drinking plain nettle or red raspberry leaf (at least in my opinion anyways.)

Tulsi is most commonly known as an adaptogen to help the body to be able to adapt to different things like weather changes, external and internal stressors, etc. It's the kind of herb that can have an overall supportive effect for our health and for different systems of the body.

Final Thoughts

Of course, you could try growing other herbs in your garden, and you could really grow any herb that you like and that would do well in your particular growing climate. And if you want to try growing herbs from seeds then you would have even more options for variety in the herbs that you can grow (although some herbs can be a bit trickier to grow from seed and require some special preparation, so it's important to read all of the growing instructions for those.) The herbs listed above, though, are some great ones to get started with if you've never tried growing your own herbs before or if you want to expand on your culinary herb garden to include herbs that you can use for herbal teas as well.

(Lori Elliott is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.)

The information in this post is not to be taken as medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease.