- Hi, I'm Shana Lipner Grover from Sage Country Herbs,
and I'm here with Mountain Rose Herbs
looking at plants
that you can easily grow in your garden
which gives you access to abundance.
So let's check 'em out.
So let's talk about this friend right here.
And I say friend very purposefuly
because this is a friend to so many.
This is another very popular member of the Lamiaceae family,
the mint family.
This is lemon balm.
Its Latin name is Melissa officinalis.
I love talking about
when plants have a species name officinalis,
and that is because that goes back in history
to a time when in the 1700s, Carl Linnaeus,
one of the first people
that developed binomial nomenclature,
which is the naming of natural things with two names
to be able to separate them out from the difference
between lemon balm and oregano, for instance.
And when a plant has a species name
of officinalis or officinale,
what that means is that it was a recognized drug plant.
So literally it was recognized by,
remember back then, in the 17 and 1800s,
all doctors had to be botanists
because this was the main medicine that was used.
And so when something is called officinale,
it was literally an official medicine.
And while we may not look at things in that way in
nowadays as much,
the medicinal compounds of the plants have not changed
and those of us that are really into herbal medicine
know that this is absolutely a fantastic herbal medicine.
There are so many wonderful aspects about it.
So, lemon balm of course is named lemon balm
because it's not related to lemon in any way,
but anybody who has ever squeezed a leaf,
(inhales)
oh God, it's so good,
it smells like you're getting
smacked in the face with a lemon tree
or someone's spraying you with essential oil.
It's so strong.
I remember actually I smelled this plant
before I ever met it.
I was walking through a friend's garden and it was like,
(sniffs)
where's the lemon coming from?
And it was this plant.
It just rubbed up against my leg.
And it just, it was so in my face,
and they were like, oh, it's a lemon balm.
And I went and did (inhales)
that to, and it was like, (exclaims)
it was so intense, and it makes you stop.
It makes you like, oh.
Another really cool thing about that really strong sense
is that our sense of smell
is more deeply connected to our memories
than any other of our senses.
And so when you smell something
that is reminiscent of a good time
or a nostalgic experience,
it can just put you right back into that space.
So I really appreciate lemon balm.
The other aspect about that
is that citrus type of aromatics are generally uplifting,
and uplifting is something that, well, quite frankly,
we all can use when we're dealing with stress in our lives,
and that uplifting,
sometimes people want to call it antidepressant
because we've learned to use these types of words
that we learn about from our pharmaceutical drug culture.
But ultimately
this plant is working on a very different level
than your pharmaceutical antidepressants,
so that's why we call it an uplifting herb.
It's really wonderful
for when you're feeling a little bit down,
a little bit melancholy,
maybe dealing with a little bit
of mild depression or some grief.
Lemon balm is a wonderful, wonderful ally
to help give us a hug, help raise our spirits,
help to put us back into that heart-centered place
where we can really be looking out at the world
with some hope and optimism.
Which sometimes that can feel a little distant,
and I feel like lemon balm,
with its really that overwhelming scent,
but also, there's so many other reasons
beyond just the scent.
And that's actually another thing
I want to talk about in relationship to lemon balm,
is that most people learn about it
in relationship to the aromatics.
If you're into essential oil,
it is ridiculously expensive to buy Melissa essential oil
because the aromatics of Melissa are very volatile,
meaning they dissipate very quickly.
You could spend $80
on a small amount of some lemon balm essential oil,
and then leave the lid off accidentally,
and your $80 just dissipated in your house
or your room smells lovely for a little while,
and then there goes your $80.
So, a much better idea
is actually to hang out next to the plant.
It's a very easy plant to grow.
It obviously likes to spread around
because it is in the mint family.
But beyond that essential oil,
there's so much more going on with this plant.
So I love being able to use lemon balm
both as a functional medicine, but also as something
that helps other medicines taste better.
Because one of the big issues that I have found
with herbal medicine when people
are not as successful with it
is not understanding how to formulate
so that you will be consistent with the medicine.
Taking something one time for an acute issue
is not generally going to cut it.
Taking something one time for a chronic issue
is not generally going to cut it.
So one of the tricks of working with herbs
is creating that relationship with the herb,
where you can be working with it in general,
on a regular basis, and having some consistency,
whether it's having it in a tea that you drink every day
or having a tincture or a glycerite
that you are using on a regular basis.
There are so many wonderful ways to use it,
but to realize that being consistent,
especially when it comes to any type of infection,
that it is going to be the most beneficial
when you are consistently using it on a regular basis
through, and not just until the infection is over,
but for a few days after the symptoms
of the infection subside, so that you're really making sure
you're keeping that immune system boosted
and having that really direct effect on it.
Of course, the other aspect that I use the most of
is that uplifting effect,
and one of my favorite things to talk about with lemon balm
is how to use it to its benefit.
It's both that uplifting effect,
but also it kind of goes hand-in-hand
with one of the other affinities that it has,
and that is with the nervous system.
Not only is this a calming herb
that will help to calm down the nervous system,
help you to be able to navigate through things
that make you a little tense,
but also that that calming of the nervous system
helps often with an overexcited immune system,
it helps to just overall calm everything down,
helps with things like anxiety.
So it's not just helping with things like depression.
It's also at that other end of the spectrum,
where people are just too wound up and too overwhelmed.
Lemon balm is a wonderful aspect
to helping with anxiety, panic attacks,
really anything that has to do with feeling ungrounded.
When you can find a remedy
that is hitting an issue on multiple avenues,
having an effect on different systems
that are all culminating into a overall net gain
on whatever the issue is, that's just a wonderful thing.
And then when you can learn to formulate it appropriately.
I know that things like lavender
are also really wonderful.
St. John's Wort, also really wonderful.
Rose, and when you combine these,
they're all now helping each other out
and that's also a beautiful thing.
When we come together in community,
we can get so much more done.
Well, the same thing goes for plants.
Of course, the uplifting aspect,
rose and mimosa tree and lavender
are also wonderful, uplifting herbs as well.
And really, we live
in such a stressed out culture these days,
but also in general, that I think having allies
that are really easy to grow,
that you can just go, and sit next to (exhales)
and breathe in and have some joy on the day-to-day.
One of the most important things
that I have found in being an herbalist
is recognizing that sitting next to a plant
and acknowledging that it's a living thing is medicine.
That you don't necessarily have to imbibe herbs.
Of course, that's a wonderful way of working with them,
but there's so many different ways of participating,
and I say that very intentionally,
that healing has to have a personal participation aspect
and recognizing that, just taking the time
to come and sit in your garden next to plants.
That is you participating in your own healing,
and now you're actually creating
a relationship with the plant,
who is also participating in your healing,
and what a beautiful relationship that can be.