Featured Herb: Lemon Balm

Lemon Balm

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is a member of the mint family and shares its ability to be invasive. When choosing a location, do not plant any member of the mint family where it can overrun other plantings.

This plant has multiple uses and has been grown for centuries for its scent, its attraction for bees and its medicinal properties. There are still patent medicines available that utilize lemon balm as a primary ingredient.

As a culinary herb, Lemon Balm is used to flavor poultry and fish; it can be added to sauces of all kinds for light lemony flavor. The leaves can be added to green and fruit salads to give a bright pickup. It makes a delicate addition to tea breads and sugar cookie recipes. Use it in place of lemon peel for salad dressings.

Bees love the small yellow blossoms; they have traditionally been planted near bee hives. The botanical name: Melissa Officinalis is taken from the Greek or possibly Minoan name of the nymph who taught the population about bees and honey. The Greek words mélissa (bee) and meli (honey) have the same derivation.

Medicinally, Lemon Balm has been used to treat stomach disorders, colic in infants, insomnia and cold sores. Recent research has found it may be effective in treating dementia and anxiety. Treatment usually involves teas or tisanes of lemon balm and other herbs or topical application of oils. Products utilizing Lemon Balm are available from most herb product suppliers (see my Sources Page).

In the garden, Lemon Balm needs a sunny location where it can be confined easily. I prefer to grow mine in pots, but beds work as well. You can cut it back quite severely and it will grow back. If you let some of your plants bloom, the bees nearby will be happy. As a perennial, it will die back in winter but regrow the next spring. Walking past a planting and gently rubbing the leaves releases a pleasant light lemon fragrance.