How to Grow Medicinal Plants in the Backyard: Medicinal Herb Gardening for Beginners

Growing medicinal plants in your garden is a fun and rewarding pastime. Cultivating medicinal plants takes your backyard dirt patch to a new level. Fortunately, it’s easy to plan a medicinal garden that’s both beautiful and useful. Many common garden plants have medicinal properties. You can make some in healing tea, rub others on bug bites, and use others to boost your immune system.

Before rushing to the store to buy your medicinal plants, ensure you’re ready. When you are planning a medicine garden, you need to take into account your growing conditions. Even if you want a small windowsill garden of herbs, you’ll need to think about the intensity and duration of sunlight. If your medicine garden is outdoors, consider the length of your growing season, soil type, and daily temperature fluctuations. What plants will thrive in your garden depends on your environment.

How to grow medicinal plants in the backyard

Advantages of medicinal plants

Medicinal plants can be used in herbal baths, teas, powders, herbal extracts, syrup alone, or in combination. A plant has medicinal use ifthe chemical components in its composition that can cause reactions in humans. The dosage chemical will depend on the part of the plant used, the season, and also the soil in which that particular medicinal plant is grown.

When natural medicines are used, there are no side effects because these medicinal plant remedies are compatible with nature. Compared to pharmaceutical medicines, these plants are quite cheap. People of any age group can eat leaves, bark, seeds, or any part of medicinal plants.

Growing medicinal plants at home

Before growing medicinal plants, you must plan and educate yourself about organic production and certification requirements. For medicinal plant production, site selection and field preparation are important. The site should have excellent drainage and good air movement. It should be located where you can easily access it with equipment for planting, weed control, and harvesting.
You should choose a place with good soil. Optimum soils are loamy, fertile, and high in organic matter. Choose a site with some hard-to-control weeds. Weed control is the main production problem. Preventing the weed problem is better than trying to solve it when the crop is established.
Add organic matter, such as compost, initially. You should plant cover crops; these crops add organic matter and nutrients, produce soil tilt, conserve moisture, and help control weeds. Cover crops can also be planted between rows or beds and mowed during the growing season.
Raised beds are beneficial in most areas. Raised beds allow the soil to heat early in the spring. It also prevents the roots from being watered during heavy rains and provides good loose soil to grow root crops.
Get high-quality seeds and planting stock. Many medicinal plant seed germination rates can be very slow and irregular. Before buying seeds, know what they need. Grow your transplant. Consider growing your transplants to provide a uniform stand of plants in the field. Many medicinal plants’ roots and rhizomes also have chilling requirements that must be met before they emerge.
You can use plastic mulch for open-field herbs. You should use plastic mulch only on crops where the cost of weed control will exceed the cost of plastic mulch and its application. For most open-field herbs, standard overhead sprinkler irrigation is appropriate. Drip irrigation can also be used.
Prevention is the best technique to control pests. Try planting several small fields of different species of herbs instead of a large field of the same herb. Pests like aphids, mites, flea beetles, and cutworms can all disturb the growth of medicinal plants. To prevent problems, keep plants healthy, do not over-fertilize, maintain plant diversity whenever possible, and encourage beneficial insects.
Plan ahead of time for harvesting. Consider how you’ll harvest leaves, seeds, or roots. Many are harvested annually in the same season in which they are planted. Many perennials can be cut and allowed to grow again year after year. Medicinal plants usually require special crop equipment. Herbs can be cut by hand with shears, shovels, and forks.

Medicinal plants you can grow at home

Ajwain

The Ajwain plant grows in clusters and is similar to the money plant. The leaves of Ajwain plants have beautiful ridges and must be trimmed regularly. They can tolerate direct sunlight and grow copiously. Ajwain seeds have antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that treat stomach problems such as peptic ulcers, lower blood pressure and improve digestion and reduce cholesterol levels. The leaves have a high medicinal value and fight the cold, reduce stress and anxiety, and boost immunity. This is yet another low-care plant that grows very fast.

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Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera is probably the oldest medicinal plant in the world. Some people prefer aloe vera juice, while some young people apply the gel on the skin and hair. Even in the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industry, this plant is heavily used. Aloe Vera extract is a great skin treatment. Aloe vera gel helps relieve skin injuries, irritation, skin irritation, cuts, and insect bites. It also reduces skin swelling.

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Basil

A reasonably warm temperature, well-drained soil, regular watering, pruning, and fertilizing once a month make the Basil plant want. In turn, it provides strong immunity to the great digestive system, treats inflammatory diseases, fights free radicals, deep cleanses the skin, and reduces diabetes and depression. Basil is used to decorate various dishes in soups or salads.

Peppermint

Tea made from Peppermint leaves was used for insomnia, stomach upset, indigestion, nervous tension, cold, cramps, and nausea. It has been found that Peppermint essential oil can relieve muscle spasms and stop the growth of bacteria and viruses. It is often used as an antiviral or antibacterial in household and skin care products. Peppermint will grow almost anywhere but prefers moist ground.

Peppermint is a crossing between water Mint and Spearmint, and, like many hybrids, its seeds are sterile. You can propagate through roots that move horizontally under the soil. You can also propagate Peppermint by splitting or making cuttings. Once Peppermint is set up in the garden, it will happily colonize the entire plot. Although Peppermint will tolerate partial shade, it will have higher essential oil content and more potent medicinal properties if grown in full sunlight.

To use Peppermint, it is recommended to harvest the leaves when they mature. You can dry them in a hot, dark place or a dehydrator. The dried leaves can then be used to make tea. Mint should be grown in pots to prevent it from spreading to undesirable areas. Growing mint is easy because it likes full sun and thrives on neglect.

Sarpagandha

It is an important component in controlling blood pressure. This plant further helps in treating insomnia and asthma. It can be easily grown at the beginning of summer. Make sure you use porous and good-quality potting soil. You should water it well and keep it in a well-lit state.

Yarrow

Yarrow can also be grown from seeds. You should start seeds indoors six to seven weeks before the last frost. Harden off the plants by keeping them outside for a few hours a day for a week before planting, then plant them in well-drained soil. Yarrow is very forgiving and will grow in dry, infertile soil.

Lemon Balm

It is used to treat digestive problems but also headaches, insomnia, muscle spasms, and anxiety. Lemon balm can tolerate a wide range of soil types, full to partial shade, and cool in hot weather, although it can wilt slightly in intense, dry heat. Set up automatic drip irrigation, so it doesn’t dry out. It should be planted in a pot-like mint to reduce its spread.

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Calendula

It is a centuries-old antifungal, antimicrobial, wound-healing ally. Calendula is an independently reseeding annual that blooms throughout the season. It makes a beautiful addition to the gardens with full sun. Cut the petals fresh. You can also dry whole flowers before making seeds.

Fenugreek

Fenugreek is an herb whose leaves are used in various Indian recipes. Its benefits include lowering blood cholesterol levels, weight gain, treating inflammation, treating ulcers, and diabetes. The plant grows from seeds, and you can easily sprinkle them in a pot and cover them with soil so the seeds can germinate within 3 to 5 days.

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Ashwagandha

This powerful herb can be easily grown in your backyard during the monsoon season. It requires a small space, and you can grow multiple plants together. It strengthens the heart and lungs and thus increases your immunity levels from within.

Passionflower

Passion flowers can be grown from cuttings or seeds. Cuttings may require up to three months to root. Soak the seeds in hot water for 12 hours before sowing indoors. Be patient, as it can take up to 20 days to germinate. You want to keep young plants indoors until next spring. Plant the seeds in the spring in a well-drained, sunny place in the garden. Add a little compost to the planting hole. Keep the soil moist during the growing season.

Curry Leaf

The use of Curry Leaves has many benefits. It improves digestion, keeps anemia at bay, helps fight against diabetes, and prevents greying of hair, among others. You can easily grow a Curry Leaf plant in your backyard. If you have a young plant, place them in partial shade and fertilize them once a month for good growth.

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Ginger

If you feel nausea, motion sickness, indigestion, dry cough, cold, or sore throat, you can crush ginger juice and drink it to get instant relief. Ginger is also easy to grow in a pot. It grows well in shady spaces and requires very little care.

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German Chamomile

Sow chamomile seeds indoors about six to seven weeks before the last frost and after hardening, transplant them into the garden. You can also sow Chamomile seeds directly in the garden in early spring or fall. Either way, avoid covering the seeds with soil, as they need light to germinate. Instead, just set the seeds on the soil surface. Once established, Chamomile will self-seed throughout the garden.

Black Haldi

Black Haldi is a hidden wonder that can be grown in any land type. You can grow it throughout the year, whether in the monsoon, summer, or winter. You can grow Black Haldi in small containers and then transfer it to a larger pot if needed. Black turmeric is an antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory benefits as well. This plant’s root helps treat asthma, arthritis, epilepsy, and many other diseases.

How do I make my herbal garden successful?

Growing a medicinal plant in the garden is done in many ways. Grow your medicinal plants in the greenhouse if you want year-round access to treatment plants. Many medicinal plants are annual or perennial and will die in winter. Most pure and medicinal plants want full sun and well-drained soil. Harvest them regularly, cutting stems and stalks like Mint, Sage, Basil, and Rosemary or picking flowers. This encourages more growth if you let them grow undisturbed.

Medicinal plants garden layout

Once you know which medicinal plants you’ll be using in your medicinal garden, it’s time to plan. Consider the heights of mature plants and color schemes as you lay out your garden. Tall plants should be on the back, close to a building. If you’ve got a large garden, you’ll want to intersperse the colors and ensure the flower colors fit together. Combining textures, colors, heights, and hardscape features will help make your medicinal garden as beautiful as a garden designed for beauty.

If your garden provides full sun, but some plants require shade, you can plant them under or near large plants. Carefully planning your garden will help you work with your growing conditions rather than against them. Planning your medicine garden shouldn’t be a full-time task, but take the time to make sure you choose plants that will perform well in your growing conditions. Think about the sun, soil type, temperature, and rainfall. Then, choose medicinal plants that work well in your garden and serve your desired purpose.

Conclusion

Growing medicinal plants in your garden means using freshly harvested herbs in your cooking. Each herb has medicinal properties. They are used in traditional medicine to treat cough, cold, fever, burns and cuts, wounds, and other primary health care conditions. Medicinal plants contain natural substances used to treat illness for centuries.

Herbal medicines are considered safer than pharmaceutical drugs or synthetic medicines. Many medicinal plants can help prevent illness and promote health. Some are even used as food supplements. Growing some of these medicinal plants home can save you time and money.

How to Grow Medicinal Plants in the Backyard: Medicinal Herb Gardening for Beginners

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