Melissa officinalis, melissa, balm.

Used since ancient times to calm the heart and the body, lemon balm with its delicate lemony flavor uplifts the spirit and any culinary dish it is added to. It has been used to sweeten jam, jellies, as an addition to salad, and as a flavoring for various fish and poultry dishes and liqueurs. Further, lemon balm is used for making perfumes, in cosmetics. It is often found as a tea in combination with other relaxing herbs such as valerian, as an essential oil, and also in ointments for topical applications.

USES

Drink Tea made with Lemon Balm to generate enthusiasm if your feeling tired or jaded. 

Add a Sprig of Lemon Balm to the Bathwater to soothe away stress and dispel nightmares.

Drink a Lemon balm infusion to calm the stomach

Attracts Bees & Butterflies

Rejuvenate Skin 

Calm & Soothing & Good Cheer

HISTORY AND FOLKLORE

The use of lemon balm goes back thousands of years to the time of the ancient Romans and Greeks.One of its first recorded uses was as a wine infused liniment (topical preparation) applied for insect bites and stings. 

Lemon balm was traditionally used to uplift the spirits and to enhance memory. This herb was used in spells to heal broken hearts and also to attract romantic love. It was believed that a lemon balm bag put under the pillow could help promote sleep and put in the bath would promote relaxation.

In an ancient text of the Middle East recounting Azerbaijani folk medicine practices called the Tibbname, a bath in lemon balm tea was believed to support radiant skin.

Lemon Balm was carried into Europe through Spanish trade routes,  eventually making its way into the monastic gardens through out Europe. It was included in the formula for Carmelite water, a drink and perfume developed and closely guarded by the Carmelite friars and used as a drink to ward off nervous headaches and as a perfume to bring good cheer while masking strong odors in medieval and renaissance Europe.

In folklore, Lemon Balm was used to ward off evil, and to promote good health, love, and good cheer.

MAGICAL

Love Potions, Aphrodisiac, Fertility, 

Thriving in both sun and shade, soils of a wide pH, dry and damp conditions, Lemon Balm teaches versatility, particularly in how we grow. If Lemon Balm has popped up in your life, it may be time to ask yourself what conditions are present in your life that you must embrace to thrive. Has a challenge surfaced that you resist? Have you identified an aspect of your life that feels unbearable, burdensome, like a whole lotta work? Lemon Balm can help you identify the trouble and find ways to adapt and thrive amidst it, or maybe in spite of it.

In Astrology, Lemon Balm is considered a feminine plant and is governed by the Moon. Lemon Balm’s element is water. In Ayruvedic medicine, Lemon Balm’s energy is pungent, sour-sweet, cool, and wet.