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How To Grow Your Own Herbal Tea Garden

For a tea lover, what could be better than a hot cup of tea?

How about tea that you’ve grown in your own herbal tea garden?

My dog and I start each day with a hot cup of tea in my backyard garden. Being outside soothes my soul, and knowing that I’m growing herbs that I can cook with and drink make it even better.

It’s simple to learn how to make herbal tea from fresh herbs, dried herbs and even teas made from flowers.

Here are 9 easy to grow tea herbs to plant in your herbal tea garden so you can make your own teas and have dried herbs for tea on hand whenever you need them.

Herbal tea garden herbs, measuring spoons and a cup of tea

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How To Grow Your Own Herbal Tea Garden

Herbal Tea Garden Tips

  1. Never use chemical pesticides, insect repellents or weed killers near any plants you plan to harvest for food or turn into tea.
  2. Don’t remove too many leaves or flowers at once so you don’t shock your plants.
  3. Most of these herbs do well in pots, so try placing a few right by your kitchen door or in a sunny window for a handy kitchen garden.

Check the Map Before You Plant

For any of these herbs, check out your location on the USDA hardiness zone map. This map can determine which plants are most likely to thrive in which locations. 

Important: Before You Begin

As always, before you add anything new to your diet, herbal or not, check with your doctor to make sure you won’t experience any unwanted reactions.

If you have allergies, be sure you don’t brew up a batch of herbal tea you’ll have a bad reaction to.

11 Plants To Grow for Homemade Tea

1. Chamomile Tea

Chamomile is one of the most popular of all the herbal teas and for good reason. Chamomile has been a folk remedy for years because it helps with insomnia, anxiety, and relaxation.

Chamomile tea is made from the little daisy-like flowers and not the leaves of the plant. It’s a perfect and pretty addition to an herbal tea garden.

This perennial is easy to grow from starter seedlings or seeds. But it grows best in cooler conditions with well-draining sandy soil. USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 3-9 are the perfect locations to grow chamomile.

2. Mint Tea

Mint is another popular herb to add to your tea garden. Your local garden center will probably have more than one variety to choose from: peppermint, spearmint, and chocolate peppermint just to name a few.

Mint herbal tea is great for digestion and can soothe an upset stomach.

The tea is made from the leaves of the plant.

Beware that mint plants are very invasive and can take over your garden if you let them. I always plant my mint in a pot so I don’t have to worry about starting a mint forest in my back yard.

Mint does well in sun or shade and really doesn’t require much care other than an occasional watering. Mint grows well in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 3-11.

3. Dandelion Tea

Who knew a common weed would be a good choice for your herbal tea garden?

Dandelions are high in vitamins A and K. This tea is good for your liver and can help you flush out fluids if you are retaining water.

Dandelion tea is brewed from the leaves and root of the plant.

Like most weeds, they are easy to grow in both sun and shade.

4. Echinacea Tea

Echinacea, or purple coneflower, is a perennial which means it will come back year after year. Where I live in California, it’s a popular garden plant because it’s easy to grow and has beautiful large flowers.

Echinacea tea is helpful in fighting colds and the flu and has been used for medicinal purposes for hundreds of years. There are many great tea recipes for colds, coughs and flu out there you can make with this herbal remedy.

The tea can be made from the leaves, stems, flowers, and roots of the plant.

Echinacea plants like full sun, well-drained soil and thrive in USDA hardiness zones 4-9.

Herbal tea garden plants with a cup of tea

5. Lemon Balm Tea

Lemon balm is a lemon-scented herb that looks like mint. I love brushing my hands along my lemon balm plants – they smell soooo good!

Lemon balm tea can help relieve stress and anxiety. There is even evidence that it helps heal cold sores.

Lemon balm is an easy to grow perennial that doesn’t require much care once established. It thrives in USDA zones 4 through 9.

The leaves can be used both fresh and dried to make lemon balm tea.

MORE TO SIP ON: Make a Green Tea Matcha Latte

6. Ginger Root Tea

Ginger root is the rhizome of a flowering tropical plant. It’s the same root that you can find in the grocery store produce section.

Ginger root tea is amazing for nausea, stomach upset and motion sickness.

Ginger is easy to grow in USDA zones 9-12. It likes filtered sunlight and moist soil since it is a tropical plant.

7. Hibiscus Tea

The hibiscus plant is a gorgeous flowering shrub covered with showy blooms.

Hibiscus tea is a gorgeous vibrant color, high in vitamin C and pleasantly tart.

The tea making process is more complicated than just harvesting leaves because you have to harvest each calyx and dry them before using.

They are easy to grow if you live in the warm climate of USDA zones 5-9, but must be protected from freezing temperatures in the winter.

8. Rosehip Tea

Rosehip tea is made from the fruit, not the flower of the rose plant. (Did you even know roses had fruit??)

Rosehip tea is high in anti-inflammatory properties and can help in fat loss.

The rosehip is the rounded part of the rose located below the petals. They are harvested after the blossoms fall off after the weather cools. So if you want to make rosehip tea from roses in your garden, don’t prune the blooms off until later in the fall.

Rosehips are sweeter if they are harvested after the first frost, or in late fall if you live in a warmer climate.

9. Parsley Tea

Not only can you buy parsley at the grocery store, but it’s super easy to grow in your garden.

Parsley tea is high in antioxidants, is a good source of vitamin C and is a natural diuretic.

It takes a while to start from seed, so seedlings are what I always plant in my garden patch each spring. It also grows well in pots and is great to keep just outside your kitchen door.

10. Marigold Tea

This tea is made from the dried petals of the pot marigold, also known as Calendula officinalis. Because of this marigold tea is also known as calendula tea

From digestive issues to skin conditions, marigold tea is a powerhouse in any herbal tea garden.

11. Mugwort Tea

Mugwort is a useful addition to your home garden if you’re into herbal medicine. This perennial can be made into mugwort tea that is known for being a digestive aid and for assisting in lucid dreaming. Mugwort is also used in Seer’s tea, a tisane used for intuitive dreaming and divination.

Herbal Tea or Tisane?

Before anyone creates a ruckus, it’s important to note that the only true “teas” come from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. This plant is the source of green tea, black tea, oolong, and white tea.

Anything else that you steep in hot water is considered an herbal infusion, or tisane. So technically, all of these make herbal tisanes.

But for the sake of simplicity, I’m calling all of these herbs “tea” plants.

Tips for Making Herbal Tea At Home From Your Own Herbal Tea Garden

  • Harvest in the cool of the morning.
  • Check your garden for common weeds like purslane, since they can also be made into a healthful herbal purslane tea.
  • Harvest herbs before they flower for the best taste.
  • You can make tea from freshly harvested leaves
  • To extend your harvest, dry herbs by tying them in bunches and hanging upside down.
  • When dry, store in airtight containers.

Tips and Tricks for Growing a Tea Garden in Small Spaces

If you live in a small apartment or don't have a yard, don't despair! There are lots of ways you can grow your own herbal tea. All you need is a patio, balcony or even a sunny windowsill.

If you are confused about where to start, there are some great herbal tea gardening books and supplies to get you started off on the right foot with your herbal tea garden.

If you live in a location where cannabis is legal and the climate is right, you could even add a few marijuana plants so you can make medicinal weed tea.

If you love tea as much as I do, pin this to your favorite tea-loving Pinterest board and pass it on for others to enjoy! Pinkies up!

herbal tea garden plants, apothecary jars and a cup of tea in a glass cup and saucer.