15 Herbs for Tea by Marian Sebastiano

15 Herbs for Tea 

Growing your own herbal teas can be just as therapeutic as drinking them. The tea garden is a sensory delight, producing colors, aromas and flavors to enjoy throughout the seasons.

The plants are easy to grow and you don’t need a large area – even a few small containers will do very well. The tea garden can be a place of comforting beauty, possibly beginning with a border of light blue catnip flowers in early spring, soon followed by fragrant white chamomile blossoms and then purple mints and red sage. Hummingbirds and butterflies love to frequent the tea garden, enjoying the sweet nectar's and adding to the soothing atmosphere.

By drying the tea herbs and then blending and packaging them in your own unique way, you can share the bounty of your garden with appreciative friends and family.

Inside you’ll find everything you need to know about growing and using tea herbs; from information on planting and maintaining your herb bed to harvesting, drying and blending the herbs for unique, personalized flavors.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• What Is Tea?
• Traditional Tea
• Planting a Tea Garden
• Good Soil
• Siting the Tea Bed
• Maintenance
• The Herbs in My Tea Garden
• Harvesting Tea Herbs
• Drying
• Containers
• Brewing a Cup of Herbal Tea
• Brewing by Infusion
• Brewing by Decoction
• Iced Teas
• Tea Blends
• Herbal Punches
• Additional Tea Blend Ingredients
• Packaging Your Tea Blends
• Some Things to Be Careful About
• Metric Conversions
• Sources of Plants and Supplies
• For Further Reading

From the soil to the seed to the food you eat - we'll help you grow your best garden!