Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow at Home
Medicinal herbs are easy to grow at home and also they can be beautiful and health-promoting too. Medicinal herbs are used in a variety of medicines, food, and skincare products, and perfumes. In this article we also discuss the below topics about medicinal herb plants;
- Indoor medicinal herbs everyone should grow
- Best plants to grow in a medicinal herb garden
- Best medicinal herbs for the garden
- Easy to grow medicinal plants at home
- Incredible medicinal herbs for your indoor garden
- Medicinal herbs you can grow indoors
Grow herb plants indoors for a beautiful and healthful garden. Where growing plants at home for medicinal purposes is an age-old practice. You don’t need much land or any to start a medicinal herb container garden. Herb plants have been used as medicines by various cultures around the world for centuries. Fresh herbs make recipes taste even better and these herbs are great to have around for stews, soups, and salads. In picking a place to grow herbs, keep in mind that they need a good 4 to 6 hours of sun daily. There are so many plants that have medicinal benefits and we can grow them easily in our home in containers.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow in the Home Garden
Good soil, optimum sunlight, and daily care are required for growing medicinal plants. Medicinal plants can be otherwise grown in pots, packets, or trays if you have no open yard. Some medicinal plants require acidic soil for which some clay and stagnation before planting. Also, use some peat or sand for loosening the soil. Organic inputs can be added for plants, which also make the soil more acidic.
Reasons to Grow Medicinal Plants
Medicinal plants are also called medicinal herbs. Medicinal plants are used in traditional medicine practices since ancient times. Herb plants play major roles in disease prevention and their promotion. Then, there are no side effects when natural medicines are used because these medicinal plant remedies are in sync with nature. There is no huge investment for people when medicinal plants are brought home. In comparison to the box of pharmaceutical medicines, these medicinal plants are quite cheap. The leaves, bark, seeds, or any part of the plants can be consumed by people of any age group. Medicinal plants are sustainable options. Most of the modern-day medicines use many living organisms such as scorpions or horseshoe crabs. So, using medicinal plants is an eco-friendly choice. Medicinal herbs used in cooking retain their properties aiding the body. Coriander or ginger is mostly used in regular Indian cuisine and they are beneficial. Most of the medicinal plants can be grown at home easily. With minimal care, these medicinal plants would protect you forever.
Here are top herbs to grow at home to appreciate for their medicinal qualities as much as their flowers and foliage.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #1. Aloe Vera
Aloe Vera plants prefer dry, loose soil. Aloe Vera plants don’t like being wet, so you want to make sure your pot has plenty of drainage holes and your soil is amended with lots of perlite or sand. Then, allow the soil to go completely dry before watering. Aloe Vera plants don’t need regular fertilizer and they’re pretty low maintenance. Aloe Vera not only helps your body but also adds beauty at home.
Aloe Vera plant is known for its soothing properties for burns or skin problems. Many people keep this plant handy in the kitchen for incidental burns. Aloe Vera plants are succulent and are as much as 95% water. That means they are sensitive to frost. In warm climates, the plants should be in full sun or light shade. But you have more success with this plant by keeping it indoors in a sunny window. Aloe Vera juice is used to relieve constipation and also improves digestive health.
- Strawberry Farming in Containers: Grow Fresh Berries Anywhere
- Growing Cayenne Peppers from Seed at Home: A Comprehensive Guide
- 9 Cheap Ways to Fence Your Home Garden
- 10 Mulching Practices for Terrace Garden
- The Role of Watering in Preventing Drying Moringa Pods
- Best Liquid Fertilizer for Flowering Plants
Aloe Vera plant is the most common houseplant grown as it is easy to grow with several medicinal uses. The gel inside Aloe Vera leaves of this favorite house-succulent is lauded for sunburn relief. Also, it helps rashes, warts, eczema, and stretch marks.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #2. Peppermint
Peppermint is very easy to grow plant and it requires is moist soil and some sunlight. Peppermint must be grown in confined spaces as it spreads very quickly. When mature, Peppermint can be cut down to 1 inch above the ground. After that, in around 90 days, Peppermint is ready to harvest again.
Peppermint aids digestion and also helps in alleviating digestive symptoms such as indigestion, gas, and bloating. It may help ease menstrual cramps. It is known to relieve anxiety and improve sleep. Peppermint has several culinary uses. It is a used flavoring substance in chocolates, chewing gums, drinks, etc.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #3. Calendula
Calendula is also known as pot marigold. It is an annual with bright yellow and orange flower color heads that shine like the sun in your garden. It is one of the most commonly used herbs in herbal oils, salves, and creams. It is used in cosmetic and skin preparations for its anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and skin-healing properties, to treat everything from acne to eczema.
The Calendula plant is one of the most familiar herb plants, earning our affection with its cheerful golden flowers. Calendula plant does well as a container plant. Calendula will self-sow unless you mulch heavily. Like all marigolds, calendula helps to protect other plants in your garden from pests like aphids. Calendula is a centuries-old antifungal, antiseptic, wound-healing ally.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #4. Turmeric
Turmeric is one such herb and it is used as herbal medicine. Turmeric must be a top priority for any grower who wants to create an indoor medicinal herb garden. It is the only source in the world for the extremely potent antioxidant curcumin. It is an active base ingredient in natural remedies for muscle and joint pain, as well as inflammation. It is also used to create Golden Milk, a delicious method to treat and soothe the symptoms most often associated with the flu and common cold.
Turmeric plant does best in full sun. When possible, relocating the indoor growing pots outside during the summer months can help produce a bumper plant yield. Watering only needs to occur about every 2 days to keep the soil moist. Turmeric will mature in about 8 to 10 months and you must remember to save some of the harvested rhizomes to use to start new plants.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #5. Garlic
Garlic is mainly used for lowering cholesterol and blood pressure. It has antimicrobial effects and it is a species in the onion genus, Allium. Garlic cloves are used for consumption (raw or cooked) or several medicinal purposes.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #6. Ginger
Ginger is a perennial herb plant. It is used to ease nausea and motion sickness. This exotic plant grows best in fertile, moist well-draining soil with warm temperature levels. It is a beautiful plant that can grow about 3 feet tall, with purple and pale yellow color flowers. Ginger grows well in containers and pots make sure that the ginger roots have at least 12 inches to grow. Whichever pot material you choose for growing Ginger, terra-cotta, or plastic, the base must have plenty of drainage holes.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #7. Lavender
Lavender is an easy-to-grow, non-invasive perennial plant to add to your garden. Lavender is a great flower for using as a border around a garden or along a path where you can get the most out of its fragrance. It is also an excellent herb for reducing anxiety, whether the anxiety is acute and specific or more chronic and generalized. These flowers can be enjoyed for their aromatic and calming scent in the garden, or added to the bath to help ease emotional and physical tension. It is also great when mixed with other garden herbs and made into a calming tea.
Full sun and well-drained soil are the prime requirements for growing Lavender plants. Lavender oil has both cosmetic and medicinal uses. Its oil carries antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties and that helps in healing burns and bug bites. Lavender oil is a great agent in curing stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia. Lavender tea is also important in curing digestive problems and nausea.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #8. Parsley
Parsley is a popular herb plant whose leaves are a common garnishing and flavoring ingredient. It is rich in several vitamins, antioxidants, and has anti-bacterial properties. Also, it supports eye, heart, kidney, and bone health.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #9. Rosemary
Rosemary plant is an aromatic medicinal herb from the mint family. Dried rosemary is used in cooking to add flavor, especially to meat. Medicinally, it can help improve your mood and helps sweeten your breath. When you’re having trouble concentrating, drink a cup of rosemary tea will help to boost memory and concentration. Also, you can try making your rosemary oil. Rosemary essential oil speeds up the healing of external wounds or skin irritations.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #10. Tulsi
Tulsi is also known as Basil. It has been used for thousands of years in Ayurveda for its diverse healing properties and also used in many medicinal properties. The plant leaves strengthen the stomach and help in respiratory diseases. Grow Tulsi plant in a pot with fertile soil, and keep it moist but not overly soggy. Once the Tulsi plant grows to 1 foot tall you can begin to harvest its leaves and flowers. Tulsi plant has been a powerful agent in reducing high blood pressure and high cholesterol, treating asthma, headache, cold, cough, and gastric disorder, etc. It is believed to treat arthritis and diabetes.
Tulsi has also been used to treat kidney issues, stomach spasms, to treat loss of appetite, to deal with the retention of fluid, and to relieve head cold symptoms. This medicinal herb plant grows best in full sun. Tulsi contains antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties and is useful in combating stress, reducing fever, boosting the immune system, and it is beneficial for the gastrointestinal system. Also, it supports the heart, liver, and eye health. Basil is easy to grow and it grows best in a warm environment and thrives in sunlight.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #11. Echinacea or Coneflower
Echinacea is also known as Coneflower. It is a tall prairie flower with bold pink to purple petals. Its long and rigid flower stalks make it a great addition to flower arrangements. Coneflower is primarily used to boost immune system responsiveness in bacterial and also viral infections. It is used preventatively and for acute treatment of colds. Coneflower antibacterial and antiviral effects have supported its use in treating vaginitis, chronic upper respiratory tract infections, and other viral and bacterial infections. Coneflower is used to prevent infection of skin conditions.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #12. Sage
The Sage plant has a distinctive aroma when you brush up against it in your garden. Sage is most frequently used for sore throats and gum disease, and to reduce hot flushes during menopause because of its astringent properties. Also, Sage tea can help ease the transition to weaning, especially in cases where weaning is abrupt or after a perinatal loss. This plant prefers a medium to full sun environment, and it is an excellent kitchen windowsill plant.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #13. Marjoram
Marjoram plant is a cold-sensitive perennial herb plant with sweet pine and citrus flavors. You will want to grow Marjoram herb for many medicinal uses including pain relief of the muscles and the joints.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #14. Chamomile
The Chamomile plant is a popular natural remedy for anxiety due to its calming effects. It is a herb that has long been consumed as a natural health remedy. Chamomile is a flowering plant in the daisy or Asteraceae family. The German chamomile plant is considered the more potent variety and the type most widely used for medicinal purposes. Chamomile preparations are used for many human ailments and also essential oils of Chamomile are used widely in cosmetics and aromatherapy.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #15. Lemongrass
Lemongrass is widely used as a culinary and medicinal herb plant. It contains vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B5, calcium, sulfate, iron, copper, potassium, magnesium, and zinc. The antioxidants like luteolin, glycosides, quercetin, and catechol in lemongrass mainly help to prevent cancer, stomach disorders, fever, aches, and insomnia.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #16. Lemon balm
Lemon balm is a perennial herb plant from the mint family. The plant leaves, which have a mild lemon aroma, are used to make medicine. People suffering from depression, anxiety, restlessness, and irritability can benefit from taking Lemon balm. The herb is a great addition to a medicinal first-aid kit. Preserve it as a tincture or infused oil to use on cuts, cold sores, and insect bites.
Best Medicinal Herbs to Grow #17. Thyme
Thyme is a Mediterranean herb plant with dietary, medicinal, and ornamental uses. The flowers, leaves, and oil of the thyme plant have been used to treat a range of symptoms and complaints. Then, these include diarrhea, stomach ache, arthritis, and sore throat. The most common Thyme variety is Thymus vulgaris. It has antiseptic and antibacterial properties. Its aroma helps relieve stress and promotes rest, which is good for your immune system. This medicinal herb plant prefers full sun, and lightweight and well-draining soil.
In case if you miss this: Organic Gardening Questions.