Herbs and teas

[cookieangel]

Hi all!

Lately, I am into drinking tea. My best choice is the green tea for its antioxidant and weight-loss properties, aside from the soothing and calming experience it gives. Yesterday, a friend introduced me to a different kind of tea and I loved it at once! She called it tarragon tea. The herb she just got from her garden. The leaves she put in a hot water and after a while, like five minutes, the water turned a bit green already, signalling that it is okay to drink it already, I LOVE IT! The taste is different, in fact it does not taste like the traditional tea at all. It has a sweet taste.

My friend gave me some and I just planted it, crossing my fingers that it will thrive and grow in my garden.

What I want to know is that, do you have any more ideas on what I can grow to make tea? I want to give my tarragon company, and also for variation of the tea I will be drinking.

 

[warmweatherwoman]

I love this idea! I recently switched from coffee in the morning to tea. I've wanted to find a way of making my own tea instead of purchasing the tea bags...and you just gave it to me! Thank for the tip and I look forward to input from other gardeners on what else I can plant to make tea.

 

[zigs]

I make Dandelion coffee by roasting the roots, really nice with milk & 2 sugars

 

[warmweatherwoman]

I make Dandelion coffee by roasting the roots, really nice with milk & 2 sugars

oh that sounds super YUMMY!

 

[zigs]

It is, very good for you too (apart from the sugar)

 

[papillon]

I have recently discovered peppermint tea and I really enjoy it, especially the smell! Now I'm growing peppermint in my herb garden so that I can make it fresh whenever I want. I've also heard that adding spearmint to it (making it double mint tea) makes a tasty variation.

 

[claudine]

Zigs, I haven't heard of Dandelion coffee before, it sounds really good. Maybe I should try it, I have lots and lots of dandelions in my garden
As for tea - I often drink mint tea, it's very refreshing. I also like lemon balm tea because it helps me to relax. It's perfect for people who are stressed or who have trouble falling asleep.

 

[cookieangel]

I got another tip from a friend: plant a crysanthemum! The buds or even the small ones can be turned into a tea. This, according to her, is quite popular in china. Chrysanthemum tea, according to her, is also soothing and calming and has also a sweet taste. She is trying it soon, and if it is successful, I will also plant one in the garden. Not only will it make the garden beautiful, the flowers as well can be turned into something useful.

 

[claudine]

I'd never guess that it's possible to make a Chrysanthemum tea, it's a nice idea. Although I must say that I'm not too fond of these plants, they aren't very popular here, were I live. In my country Chrysanthemums are considered cemetery flowers: people usually put them on graves of their loved ones.

 

[cookieangel]

Cemetery flowers? Now that makes me not want to have one in my garden anymore LOL! Chrysanthemums are of a lot of variety and the small kind is the one being used in teas. I also am not sure if it will grow in the city where I am.


Here is an example of chrysanthemum tea.

 

[claudine]

Cemetery flowers? Now that makes me not want to have one in my garden anymore LOL! Chrysanthemums are of a lot of variety and the small kind is the one being used in teas. I also am not sure if it will grow in the city where I am.

Here, in my country, you see Chrysanthemums either on a cemetery or at florist shop, people usually don't grow them in their gardens...actually, it's rather strange.
But the Chrysanthemum tea looks really pretty!

 

[cookieangel]

Well, come to think of it, I also have not seen any houses here in the city where I live chrysanthemums. I also have not seen any from the flower shop. I only get to see it in pictures, and the last time I saw the real thing was when I went to Germany. There was a festival of flowers then and chrysanthemum was the main star of the festivities.

 

[zigs]

Zigs, I haven't heard of Dandelion coffee before, it sounds really good. Maybe I should try it, I have lots and lots of dandelions in my garden .

Give it a go Claudine, you'll be suprised how big the roots get. Wear gloves though as the sap will stain your hands for days,

Scrub & chop the roots up, in a food processor if you've got one, then roast them till they are dry, golden brown if they've gone black, you've burnt them

 

[claudine]

Zigs, thank you for the tip, I'll definitely give it a try. I'm a coffee addict so this might be a nice alternative. I'll have to fight with my sister's turtles though - they love eating dandelions, fortunately they only eat leaves, not roots

 

[dconklin]

I make Dandelion coffee by roasting the roots, really nice with milk & 2 sugars

Oh wow, I never would have thought that they were non toxic to eat or drink

I hadn't thought of any of these ideas for making tea. I love green tea and have tried some of the store bought herbal teas, but never tried to make any from fresh herbs.

I have some experimenting to do!