Lemon Balm

The morning sun is as bright as it can be as February draws to an end. And on this bright, sunny morning I have dreams of lemon balm! While my my husband and I were out walking our property, with entourage of two dogs and two yellow cats, I noticed the bright,green,and crinkly leaves of my newly emerging lemon balm plants. Apparently my lemon balm was making an early entrance due to the warmer temperatures that we have had. It's a sturdy plant that can grow almost anywhere but does best in the full sun. Lemon balm is a plant that belongs to the mint family. It has been growing in my garden for years, just as it grew in my sister and father's gardens. It's a wonderful plant but does tend to get out of control if you don't take care of it. The green deepens as the plant grows and if you don't keep cutting it, to use, it becomes leggy. My father used to keep a glass jar of lemon balm tea in his frig and used it for stomach issues. Lemon balm has been reported to have healing abilities,kill bacteria,will relax muscles, and provide pain relief. The taste is mild, minty, and lemony depending on how long you allow the leaves to seep. The leaves may be dried and used for hot tea.
My lemon balm plants are scattered over most of our garden. My plan is to give this plant the respect that it deserves by transplanting some healthy specimens to a select spot in my cutting herb garden. I will repot them in a garden pot and then sink the pot into the soil of my raised bed, hopefully keeping it under control.
In the past I have had lemon balm tea, and fresh in ice tea. You can also add it fresh to salads, garnish meat or fresh fruit deserts. I have also used it to decorate cake tops.
After years of ignoring lemon balm I will again welcome it back to a warm spot in one of my raised beds. I think it's time fo me to rediscover what the ancients knew about lemon balm.