Lemon Balm
Melissa officinalis
Description
Lemon balm is a perennial herb whose leaves resemble those of mint, but give off a delicate lemon scent that makes this aromatic plant much loved by bees. Lemon balm can grow to almost a metre in height and can be cultivated either in the ground or in pots.
Leaves
The lemon balm leaf is oval, toothed and deeply veined, normally pale green in colour; in Melissa variegata the leaves retain the characteristic lemon scent, but have golden spots.
Flowers
Flowering lasts from summer until autumn; the flowers, gathered in inflorescences, are tiny and inconspicuous, their colour changes from the initial pinkish white to the pale blue of full bloom. They too have the same beneficial properties as the leaves.
Exposure
This aromatic plant finds a position in half shade ideal, as it does not like being exposed to the sun’s rays in the hottest hours of the day. Strong sun, in fact, fades its leaves and changes their scent, which becomes sharper.
Propagation
Lemon balm can be propagated by any of the three most common methods of reproduction: sowing, cuttings and division of clumps. Sowing is done in April, and patience is needed, as germination is slow; the other methods are carried out in spring or autumn.
Growth
Little care is required for its cultivation: when the clumps are too dense they should be thinned out, leaving at least half a metre between one plant and the next.
Harvesting
The best time to pick the leaves is when the flowers are beginning to open; those who like to follow tradition should harvest lemon balm on 24 June, St John's Day.
Storage
The leaves are usually dried, but unfortunately, when it is not fresh, this herb loses many of its virtues.
Properties
IN THE KITCHEN: Fresh lemon balm leaves flavour salads, fish sauces, including mayonnaise, jams and desserts.
Beauty
The infusion (a pinch of herbs in a cup of boiling water) can be used as a face tonic and as a rinse for greasy hair; the decoction (a handful of herbs placed in cold water and then boiled for about twenty minutes) is added to bathwater to tone up the body.
Health
In the case of insect stings, by placing a few leaves, freshly picked, on the painful spot, relief will be obtained.
Curiosity
Lemon balm, held by the Greeks to be sacred to Artemis, it has always been used as a medicinal plant, and the famous physician Paracelsus credited it with the power to revive even the most gravely ill patient. A lemon balm tea taken regularly, every morning, invigorates the body, strengthens the mind and drives away melancholy.