It is not necessary to grow your own plants for herbal teas. “Sources,” on page 30, lists outlets where you can purchase dried herbs in bulk. By growing your own, however, you can guarantee that only the freshest herbs go into your teas. You also gain the satisfaction of working with these fragrant and easy-to-grow plants. And quality control is in your hands. You know your teas are pesticide-free, picked at peak flavor, and packaged fresh. Purists package only what they grow, but you will probably find that some purchased ingredients — cinnamon, orange peel, and some exotic herbs — will expand your tea repertoire. So plant a few herbs, and experiment, experiment, experiment.
A tea garden can be part of an existing bed or set apart. If you have limited garden space, or none, you can still have a lovely tea garden by using a large barrel or container. The key to good tea herbs, however, is good soil. And the keys to good soil are pH, texture (drainage), and nutrients. So start with a soil pH test, which will tell you how acidic your soil is. The local Cooperative Extension Service can perform one for you, or you can buy a simple test kit from a garden center. Take samples from wherever you want to plant tea herbs. Herbs generally prefer a pH in the range of 6.5 to 7.0 — neutral to slightly acidic. If your soil is too acidic, a light dusting of ground limestone in early spring before planting time, or in fall when you’re putting the beds to rest, will correct it. If your soil is too alkaline, organic matter such as peat moss will usually fix it.
Soil texture and nutrients are also important. Take a handful of your moist (but not wet) soil and squeeze it as if to make a snowball. If the snowball forms and then crumbles away when you press a thumb into it, you have good soil. If it fails to form a ball but pours through your fingers, you probably have sandy soil. And if it forms a heavy, solid clump that refuses to crumble, you probably have soil with too much clay. One of the easiest fixes for less-than-perfect soil is compost. Simply till good organic compost into your garden bed, or mix it into your container. Compost will allow soil that is too sandy to hold water, and soil that contains too much clay to drain better. And compost is rich in nutrients to help your herbs do well. If you do not have access to your own compost, you can buy bags of good organic compost at most garden centers.
Choose a location that drains well, because only mints will tolerate wet feet. Unlike most perennials, herbs like dry conditions. So look for a dry site and soil that drains well. If you are using a container, make sure it has good drainage. If your only option for a tea bed is a damp area, consider building a simple raised bed there; this will improve drainage substantially.
Most herbs need lots of sun. Plant where they will get at least 4 to 6 hours of sun daily. Mints will tolerate some shade, so if your bed is partially shaded, plan to put the mints in the shaded areas.
If you have a sunny windowsill, you can grow some of these herbs indoors, or bring them indoors over winter.
Designing your tea bed is simple. Once you’ve picked a site, and tilled and amended the soil, think about how you want the bed to look. Here are some simple guidelines:
• Place taller plants in the back of the garden and shorter herbs in the front. If your tea bed is circular and visible from all sides, plant the tallest herbs in the center and work outward toward the shortest.
• Give the plants room for growth. Allow 12 to 18 inches between annuals and 18 to 24 inches between perennials.
• Make sure all mints are “contained.” They can be planted in bottomless buckets buried in the soil with a 2-inch rim protruding above the ground. I use chimney tiles for this purpose, although these are taller and require a 4-inch rim above the soil line. Or you can simply grow your mints in containers. Mints are extremely invasive, and if you don’t take precautions, they will take over your garden.
• Label your herbs, or you may forget what is coming up! You don’t want to weed out plants that self-sow, and you won’t if you know where to expect them. Ideas for labels include pieces of slate that can be written on with a white paint pen; wooden spoons stained or painted and then coated with polyurethane spray; and odd teacups from garage sales — write the plant names on the insides with a permanent marker pen and place one near each plant. Even Popsicle sticks make good plant markers. Just write on them with a permanent marker. Whatever you use, make sure rain and weather will not fade or wash away the letters.
Many herbs are native to the Mediterranean region, and therefore thrive in less-than-ideal conditions. In general, herbs prefer dry, slightly sandy soil and need little maintenance.
After planting, I treat my herbs to occasional feedings of soluble fertilizer. A blend of fish emulsion and liquid seaweed provides micronutrients as well as major nutrients. It’s also much better for beneficial soil organisms than the traditional commercial 20-20-20 fertilizers. (The numbers refer to the concentration of three main nutrients, nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus.) If you decide to use the traditional fertilizer, follow the dilution directions on the container for vegetables, and then dilute by half. If fertilizer is too strong, it dilutes the concentration of essential oils in herbs, and thus weakens the taste and smell.
After that, I find my garden pretty carefree. Herbs usually do not need as much watering as flowering annuals would, and I have found that the insect problems are minimal. A “mint beetle” appears in my area in early summer, but the phenomenon is short lived, and the bugs can be hand picked or ignored until they disappear. Organic gardeners learn that a few nibbles won’t impair flavor or fragrance.
A few weeks into spring, after the ground is sufficiently warmed up, I mulch my herb beds. The main purposes of mulch are to prevent weed growth and to retain moisture in the soil. My favorite mulch is cocoa shell hulls, a by-product of the manufacture of chocolate. These have a nice color and texture, don’t blow away, and smell wonderful! Also, cocoa shell mulch will not rob the soil of nitrogen when it breaks down, as some bark mulches do, and like all organic mulches, it adds organic matter upon decomposition. Other readily available mulches include shredded bark, decomposed leaves, and compost.