Many of the plants you grow in your garden for cooking can support various medical conditions.
Here are 6 medical herbs that you can easily grow at home and create your own herb garden.
Chamomile, the mother of the intestines
Chamomile is one of the most famous and delicious herbs to drink as an infusion.
In traditional herbal medicine, chamomile is considered the plant that is ‘good for the intestines’.
They also call it the ‘Mother of the Intestine’.
Chamomile is an important herb in traditional herbal medicine for treating a wide range of gastrointestinal problems.
Such problems include bowel irregularities, abdominal bloating, colic and gastrointestinal infections.
Chamomile also has a calming effect and is used in traditional herbal medicine for stressful situations, anxiety, restlessness or sleep problems.
In addition, when used externally, it can soothe eye infections, skin irritations, burns and wounds.
How to Grow Chamomile in Your Herb Garden
Plant chamomile in a pot or in your herb garden and grow it mainly in the spring months.
Choose a location that gets at least 8 hours of direct sun per day.
It takes about 6-8 weeks for the chamomile to produce flowers.
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The dried flowers of the chamomile are suitable for infusion.
You can mulch them so that the seeds fall to the ground and wait for germination.
Chamomile seeds usually germinate within 7-10 days.
Uses of chamomile
You can use chamomile flowers to make an infusion, as you need to pick them in the middle of the day.
Concentrated infusions of the dried flowers can be prepared externally and used for eye infections, skin irritations, burns, wounds, etc.
The medicinal plant is gentle and safe to use even in children.
Grow thyme in a warm and sunny location
Thyme is a perennial and evergreen herb, which includes 350 species.
It belongs to the mint family and is also a relative of the genus oregano.
This plant grows relatively quickly and can also be grown in a pot or garden.
Thyme is resistant to cold and drought, but prefers a warm and sunny position and permeable soil.
The small leaves of thyme have an aromatic scent and bloom in spring with pink flowers that need to be thinned to strengthen the plant.
Benefits of thyme for the respiratory system
In herbal medicine, thyme is used to treat respiratory problems such as flu and sinusitis, due to its expectorant properties.
This herb also contains a natural blood thinning component and can therefore prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Rosemary adapts to many growing conditions
Among medicinal herbs, the rosemary plant is extremely durable and relatively easy to grow.
It is an aromatic evergreen shrub, native to the Mediterranean and Asia, and a member of the mint family.
You can use rosemary for cooking potatoes, stews and many other foods.
How to Grow Rosemary
Rosemary is a perennial plant and is best planted in early fall or early spring.
It adapts to many growing conditions and is a fairly stable and durable plant.
Grow this herb in a sunny location, but if this is not possible, even partial shade will suffice.
In addition, you should space the plants about 50 cm apart.
Rosemary prefers relatively dry soil and should therefore not be irrigated too much.
Important to know
It is best to grow rosemary in a pot rather than in the soil of the herb garden.
as this allows it to be moved from one place to another depending on the climatic conditions.
The medicinal properties of rosemary
This herb has many medicinal properties and the essential oil has an antiseptic effect.
According to herbal medicine, you can add this plant to bath water to treat fatigue.
Some believe it is effective in treating headaches, migraines and digestive problems related to emotional disorders.
Sage the Savior
The sage plant is a perennial, evergreen shrub that belongs to the mint family.
It has grayish leaves and purplish flowers.
Sage has a long history of medicinal and culinary use and has many healing properties.
How to Grow Sage in Your Herb Garden
It is best to plant the sage in the spring.
The sage plant needs full sun or partial shade in airy soil. You should water it regularly, but in a relatively small amount.
Keep in mind that the more often you expose the sage to the sun, the more often you will need to water it.
Health benefits of sage
It is an important ingredient in the production of nutritional supplements and serves as an excellent source of fatty acids.
Sage functions as a medicinal plant and is also an important ingredient in many tea infusions.
Recent studies have shown that sage has an extremely high antioxidant effect.
Additionally, it is possible that phytochemicals in sage have anti-infective properties.
Therefore, sage has the ability to kill a wide variety of bacteria.
Black elderberry
The black elderberry is a shrub from a family of flowering plants and originates in Europe and northwest Africa.
Its healing properties have been known for centuries.
Indians use black elderberries for digestive problems such as constipation.
They also use it to treat shortness of breath and urinary tract problems.
How to grow black elderberries
To grow the plant it is advisable to purchase a seedling and not seeds, as they take a long time to germinate.
This plant prefers cold conditions and a sunny location, along with watering once or twice a week.
You can plant the black elderberry as a seedling in all seasons, but you can also grow it indoors or in your herb garden.
Health benefits of black elderberry
Black elderberry strengthens the immune system, has an anti-inflammatory effect and also helps relieve coughs.
It stimulates sweating and thus helps the body fight attacking bacteria.
Therefore, it is suitable for the treatment of flu, sinusitis, chronic inflammation and hay fever.
You can make an extract from the fruits of the elderberry to treat colds and flu,
and the flowers are good for curing rhinitis, coughing and lowering fever.
You can also make an infusion from the flowers by simply adding the dried flowers to a glass of boiling water.
Let it sit for 15 minutes before drinking it.
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is a succulent plant with a very short stem.
It has been used as a medicinal plant since the time of the Greek physician Dioscorides.
Dioscorides documented in his famous writings the use of a gel extracted from the leaves of the aloe vera to treat wounds and skin infections.
How to Grow Aloe Vera in Your Herb Garden
You can grow Aloe vera in a pot or in your herb garden.
Like other succulents, Aloe vera needs a sunny position and little water.
If you use a pot for Aloe vera, make sure it has adequate drainage holes, as this herb cannot tolerate standing water.
Make sure the soil is dry before watering the plant.
The best season to plant it is spring and summer.
Health Benefits of Aloe Vera
The gel extracted from Aloe vera is used to treat itching, inflammation, burns and heal damaged tissues.
In recent years, the medicinal properties of the gel have been investigated.
Many of these are mainly attributed to acemannan, one of the major bioactive polysaccharides of Aloe vera.
Some of its medicinal properties include immunoregulation, anti-cancer, anti-oxidation and wound healing.
Traditional herbal medicine uses the gel internally for a wide range of problems in the digestive system.
Such problems include heartburn, nausea, inflammation and ulcers in the stomach and intestines, irregularities in the intestines and for balancing blood sugar and fat levels.
Nowadays, science is also showing interest in aloe vera gel and there are several studies supporting its traditional use.
Not many people know that aloe vera gel is rich in nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, amino acids and also dietary fiber.
Using the Aloe Vera gel
The Aloe vera gel can be applied directly to treat wounds, skin irritations or burns.
It is excellent as a drink that helps treat excessive heartburn, nausea, stomach ulcers, intestinal infections and also constipation.
This gel can even be consumed as a dietary supplement.