Lemon Balm tea, anyone?

As I was reviewing the photos for this post, I was hit with the thought that they make my life look tranquil and blissful. On the whole, I guess its true. We all have problems and in the general scheme of things, I’d rather have my problems than some others, but in the interest of keeping it real I feel I should say a little more. My life is not filled with gathering armfuls of herbs and patting children on the head (or is that dogs?). If I aim the camera in the right direction, we could look like the front cover of Country Living.

Aim it elsewhere and it’s not such a happy sight. More like a WWI trench. In reality, the majority of the last few months have consisted of sleepless nights, looking down holes, discussing old drains and soakaways. Blah! Neighbouring extensions built over inspection points and water in the wrong place. Building logic that is unfathomable.  I’ve learnt not to say “At least it’s not…” as the story unfolds, which it still is doing.

Can you blame a girl for wanting to talk about lemon balm, from her sadly neglected garden, instead?

So this morning, as I sat working, I looked out the window and saw how the old bath in the garden was overflowing with lemon balm. A beautiful sight. Not much pest damage as presumably they don’t like the taste. Lemon balm is meant to keep colds at bay, soothe toothaches and aid sleep. More importantly, it makes a nice soothing cup of tea. A perfect time to harvest, too.

After removing bad leaves and making up bunches, I used the bunting over the Aga to hang them up. They should dry well and the scent in the kitchen is lovely without being overpowering. I quite like the visual effect too. (Yes, that is the dog warming herself by the Aga on a lovely sunny day!)

While I wait for the bundles to dry, I made a cup of tea with fresh lemon balm leaves. Goes wonderfully with my almond and lavender cake, while I work! Yes, a blissful moment.

I’d love to hear any favourite uses of lemon balm that you could recommend.