A fresh, lemon scented herb, Lemon Balm is easy to grow, can be used in a variety of ways in the kitchen and is great for making infusions.
Lemon Balm is also a useful, bio-friendly ally in the vegetable patch as it attracts the insects required for cultivation.
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Lemon Balm is well known among the herbs for its lemon scent, for the ease with which it can be grown, both in pots and in the garden and for the variety of culinary uses that provide that extra touch of originality to your dishes.
RB Plant from Albenga grows Lemon Balm as a part of their high-quality, intensely flavoured, natural Sunny heRBs range that is exclusively “made in Albenga”.
Lemon Balm (Melissa Officinalis) is a perennial herbaceous plant that grows in bushes that can reach over a metre and a half in height and forms little white and pink hermaphrodite flowers. Flowering normally occurs between the end of Spring and the beginning of the Summer.
Lemon Balm’s leaves are an attractive emerald, green colour with lightly serrated edges and a fine downy covering.
Including this plant to the herbs in the garden is an excellent idea because it encourages biodiversity by attracting useful insects with its flowers.
Here are some tips for successfully growing Lemon Balm and making use of it in the kitchen.
Lemon Balm: cultivation tips
This is an herb that loves fresh soil.
It suffers in hot and arid conditions but does not fear the cold. This hardy plant does not have any particular requirements except the need for frequent watering, especially during the Summer. This will keep the plant healthy and bushy. It’s best to avoid leaving stagnant pools of water that could cause the roots to rot.
Apart from this point, the only enemy of this plant is the aphid.
Its flowers also attract many useful insects such as bees and other cultivation friendly pollinators.
Lemon Balm: culinary use
Both the leaves and the flowers of this herb can be eaten, and both have the same characteristic taste. Only the leaves are suitable for drying for consumption after the harvest period.
It is excellent for adding a touch of originality to salads and soups and to decoctions and liqueurs. This herb is particularly appreciated by people who enjoy its refreshing lemon-like notes. This is a perfect herb for infusions made from the dried leaves with their digestive and calming properties.
Do you like the flavour of Lemon Balm and do you like to use herbs in your cooking?
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