I start the first hour of my Sunday radio show every week with a special feature called “In Howard’s Garden.” I talk about what to plant, what and how to fertilize, what to prune, etc. – all timely recommendations. I also talk about the herb tea I have made and brought with me to sip during the show. Herb tea is one of the best by-products of organic gardening. My favorite herbs for tea include lemon verbena, peppermint (especially chocolate peppermint), thyme, anise hyssop, ginkgo, bay, rosemary, fennel, lemongrass, oregano, spearmint, and chamomile. The flowers of linden, hibiscus, begonia, sambac jasmine, and Turk’s cap can also be used. I also use young witch hazel leaves along with blackberries and blackberry leaves.

To prepare herb teas, I simply pick fresh leaves or appropriate flowers from herbs, crush them and put in a teapot and pour in hot water after bringing it to just short of a boil. I use a glass kettle, filtered water and a ceramic teapot. Boiling water destroys many of the healthy vitamins. In fact, letting the boiling water cool down slightly before pouring is a good idea.  

Herb gardens are worth planting if for no other reason than a source for herb teas. Try some herb tea every day. Pick fresh leaves, crush them and put in the tea pot. Let the brew steep from 3 to 10 minutes depending on your taste. Tannic acid increases with time and will make the tea bitter. A single herb or a mix of various plants can be used.

Often  I use chocolate peppermint and fennel as a base and add various other herbs to create different tastes. A good lemony tea for example is lemongrass, lemon verbena and lemon balm.

Natural teas are great to me with nothing added, but lemon juice or honey can be added for taste. By the way, it really is important to use clean, filtered water. Chlorine and other contaminants can ruin the taste and quality of any good drink, as well as your health. Real tea can also be added to the herbs. Japanese green tea is my favorite. It tastes great and is reported to help prevent degenerative diseases. It does contain some caffeine.

Unused tea also has uses. Pour on the plants as a liquid fertilizer after it has cooled. The tea can also be put into your foliar spray solution. The other use is to drink it cold over ice the next day. Toss a couple of fresh leaves into your iced drink for additional flavor. The unused tea can also be frozen into ice cubes to be used in other drinks later.

The rose is a greatly underused herb. Roses can be used in teas for taste and as a health drink. Rose tea can be made from petals and is believed to fortify the heart and brain, to help female problems, stomach disorders and other ailments. Hips, which are the colorful fruits that follow the flowers, are particularly high in vitamins A,B,E, and especially C.

To make a wonderful tea from roses, use the flower petals before they unfold or the hips after they mature to a red color in the fall. Opened flower petals taste good but won’t have as much of the health-giving vitamins and minerals. Use 1 teaspoon of dried or 2 teaspoons of fresh petals for each cup of hot water. Add a little honey and enjoy hot or cold. The rugosa roses have large hips that are the richest in vitamin C.

Don’t do any of this if you are still spraying with the systemic, toxic poisons. If you are still using these unnecessary chemical contaminants like Dursban, diazinon, Orthene, Orthonex, Funginex, Sevin, kelthane or any other toxic pesticide – stop! The synthetics are dangerous and a waste of money. If you don’t know how to avoid the harsh chemicals in your rose program, I can help. See the Organic Rose Program. Try all the wonderful culinary herbs in your teas and let me know which are your favorites.