Plant Profile: Lemon Balm

I have grown lemon balm for many years. It has been a favorite plant of mine because it grows well in our area, has beautiful yellow/green ruffled leaves, lemony-mint scent and the bees love it when it flowers. The funny thing is that I have never really eaten the leaves, used the leaves in tea or anything else. I have just enjoyed the plant in the yard and have always let it go to flower for the insects. If you have been reading any of my previous Plant Profiles, you know that I like to investigate the history, folklore and medicinal uses for the plants that we grow. So, while going about my normal routine of reading more about lemon balm for this blog post I was not prepared for the information I was about to uncover. I learned that I should not eat lemon balm in any form. 

Lemon Balm and Hypothyroidism

I have always been very wary about eating herbs that are new to me. I don’t know why I am this way. I guess I just feel that just because it is natural does not mean that it is safe to eat or use. I have always been overly cautious about what we consume and usually I try to read up on things before I use it for tea or cooking. I have never taken the time to look more into lemon balm until I decided to write this article and boy am I glad I did! I should not eat or consume lemon balm in any way. Why? Because I have hypothyroidism and my treatment for it is taking Levothyroxine. During the beginning stages of my research for this blog post I discovered that if you have hypothyroidism and take Levothyroxine you should not consume lemon balm because lemon balm can change the thyroid function by reducing the thyroid hormone levels (these hormone levels are already low for those of us with hypothyroidism) and can interfere with thyroid replacement medications, specifically Levothyroxine. 

After reading this new revelation, I went down the rabbit hole reading article after article about this. It could not be true that one of my favorite plants is something that I should be wary of. It seems to be true and a very serious matter. If you have hypothyroidism and enjoy eating lemon balm or drinking tea made from it, I urge you to talk to your doctor and do some more reading on your own on this topic.

I was a little put out about this but after some thought I realized nothing will change for me. I love this plant and have for many years but I have never eaten or used this plant. I will treat my lemon balm plant as any other ornamental plant in our yard. I will continue to enjoy its lemony-minty fragrance, bright yellow/green leaves and beautiful flower clusters that the bees absolutely love.

Lemon Balm Interesting Facts

• Lemon balm is in the mint family.
• Lemon balm is also known as: Melissa, sweet balm, honey plant, balm mint, garden balm, English balm and heart’s delight.
• Lemon balm was and still is planted near honey bee hives to attract the bees. Some believe that is where its name Melissa derived from. Melissa is the Greek word for bee.
• Lemon balm is native to southern Europe and was used medicinally by the Greeks and Romans.
  • Greek physician Dioscorides used lemon balm for toothaches, scorpion stings, dog bites, to encourage menstruation and as a gout treatment.
• During Medieval times, lemon balm was steeped in wine and enjoyed by royalty.
  • King Charles V and Prince Of Glamorgan drank the cordial every day. The Prince lived to be 108 years old. After that, lemon balm steeped in wine became known as, “elixirs of youth.”
• Lemon balm was one of the sixteen plants listed in Thomas Jefferson’s garden book in 1794.
  • It is believed that lemon balm came to North America with the colonists for tea, potpourri, to attract bees and to be used as a lemon substitute in jams and jellies.
• Lemon balm is associated with health, longevity, royalty and believed to bring love, success and healing.
  • Sleeping with a sachet filled with lemon balm is believed to bring you a relaxing and rejuvenating sleep.
  • Lemon balm has been used to aid in anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, gas, bloat and indigestion.
  • The oil from lemon balm has been used as an antiviral in the treatment of herpes.
• Lemon balm essential oil is one of the most expensive essential oils in the world because the leaves produce so little oil that it takes large quantities to produce any sizable amount.

Lemon Balm Care

I have learned over the years that lemon balm goes dormant during the winter months but will come back with vigor in the spring. Lemon balm can become a large, rounded plant around 24” – 36” so give it some space to grow. It thrives in moist, well-draining soil but can handle it if the soil dries out between waterings. Lemon balm does not like afternoon sun, at least our intense summer sun in the high desert of California, zone 8b, it burns its delicate leaves. It is most happy with partial to full morning sun and partial to full afternoon shade. I would recommend more shade, especially during the summer months.

Even though lemon balm is in the mint family, it does not spread by underground runners. Lemon balm does reseed easily and some may consider it invasive because new plants will easily sprout throughout the garden. Like mint, lemon balm can be easily controlled by planting it in a pot. I have grown lemon balm both in the ground and in pots and have had success with both methods.

Quick Facts: Lemon Balm

I hope you enjoyed this blog post and learned a little more about lemon balm. 

Happy desert gardening!

Joy Simper has a full time job as a home schooling stay at home mom. She is the one that holds the house and yard together and keeps the kids in line. She enjoys gardening, including seed starting and propagating plants.