How To Grow and Use Bee Balm

https://www.mermaidsandcashmere.com/bee-balm-aka-wild-bergamot

 https://www.mermaidsandcashmere.com/bee-balm-aka-wild-bergamot

 https://www.mermaidsandcashmere.com/bee-balm-aka-wild-bergamotWild Bergamot is a very very cool plant! You may have heard the common names for it as Bee Balm, Monarda and Oswego Tea.  It has very pretty with flowers that are purple pink in the center and bubblegum pink petals. The correct name is Monarda fistulosa, there are many types of Bergamont but for this post we are talking about the wild Bergamot variety!

It is a perennial which grows to 4 ft! So when you plant them plan correctly! The leaves have a wonderful thyme or rose geranium scent!  Plant in a dry area, Wild Bergamot is very drought resistant….great for people in hot climates!

You can propagate them by seed or you can divide them in the spring. You can also take stem cuttings in the summer. Easy maintenance plants….just clear dead material from plants in winter and divide plant every 3 years!

Wild Bergamot has been used medicinally by Native Americans. It was used most commonly to cure colds, and was made into a tea. Use the leaves of the Bergamot for the tea, it is best to use fresh leaves picked from the plant!  If you are pregnant of breastfeeding do not use these herbs. Get your water boiling, once it is done, go pick those leaves! Tear them in a few pieces and put them in your cup of boiling water right away! Steep for ten minutes then remove the leaves. If it is to strong you can sweeten with honey.

 https://www.mermaidsandcashmere.com/bee-balm-aka-wild-bergamotBee Balm has also been known for its antiseptic action, It can be made into poultice for skin infections and minor wounds. It’s very easy to do! For fresh herb leaves just rub a little sunflower or veggie oil on the skin, crush the plant and place it directly on the affected area! Put a bandage over it and you have just made a poultice! Pretty cool huh? For dried herbs you can make a decoction by simmering them in a pan of water for about 5 minutes, allow to cool and then squeeze out the liquid and keep the herb to use the same way by crushing it and placing on the affected area! Easy Peasy! 

Because it is a natural source of Thymol which is in modern commercial mouthwash, you can use the cooled tea to gargle with!

So how cool is that! It is a pretty plant, drought resistant and you can use it for a cold, skin infections, and a mouthwash!  Winner winner chicken dinner!

P.S An interesting thing happened while looking for some Medicinal Herbs. I looked at every nursery I could find and got the same answer, they are hard to find! So after giving up on the plants I decided to get seeds to grow, well let me tell you that was no easy task either! To find the very different and unique seeds I wanted I had to search and search many places online! I found them only to find out they were more money that some plants. It was just crazy! Finaly I found a great place I want to share with you. It is a lovely place in Alabama called Sand Mountain Herbs and talk about variety! 

I hope you get to try Wild Bergamot in your garden, it is so fun being self reliant! 

What are you going to try first?

https://www.mermaidsandcashmere.com/bee-balm-aka-wild-bergamotWith Love and Gratitude

Jan

Continue Reading

Florida frost gardening tip!

Florida gardening

I woke up this morning to some cold weather…..well at least cold here in Florida! It is suppose to get down to the 30’s tonight! Yikes!  So my first thought is don’t panic! I’ve deal with this every year, which plants should I try to protect! I have this one rare palm tree I grew from a band plant and it is doing nicely! A band plant is the smallest size plant you can buy.  I love palm trees and I don’t want to have just any palm trees, Oh no! I have to have rare palm trees! This sweet little palm is a rare Jubaeopsis Caffra clustering coconut and I must save it!

I have a good gardening tip I found years ago that I think helps! First off you need to save your milk and soda bottles! I have collected about ten of them and I hide them behind a bush to store them 🙂 Here’s what I do! Fill them with water and place them in the sun. Once the sun starts to go down I put them around the plants and they will radiate the heat  to help protect your plants! I love my plants, and do whatever I can to some extent….whatever is easiest to protect them!  Phew! I hope this helps all my gardening friends! Do you have any tips to protect plants from frost? Please share and comment below!

Continue Reading
1 8 9 10