Welcome to the apothecary
Growing Your Own Tea Garden
from seed to cup
Most of what's in your tea cabinet will grow in a pot on your porch. The rest is knowing when to cut it, how to dry it, and what to put it with so it tastes like something.
For beginners with a yard, a porch, or one sunny window.
- Instant digital download
- 14 chapters, 24 plant guides, 10 blend recipes
- Grown and written in Zone 6b
![Growing Your Own Tea Garden [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/1.png?v=1774035485&width=900)
The drawers
What are you steeping for?
Pull a drawer. Each one holds three plants and the reason they work.
For sleep
Chamomile
Its apigenin binds to the same GABA receptors sleep medications target, much more gently.
For sleep
Lemon balm
A mint-family calmer with a bright lemon smell, studied for easing restlessness. Very hard to kill.
For sleep
Lavender
Mostly aroma, and that counts. A pinch is plenty, or your tea tastes like soap.
For digestion
Peppermint
Menthol relaxes the smooth muscle of the gut. That's the after-dinner feeling, explained.
For digestion
Fennel
The seeds are the traditional fix for bloating. The flowers feed half the pollinators in the yard.
For digestion
Lemon verbena
Tender in Zone 6b, so it lives in a pot. Bright, lemony, and a classic after a big meal.
For allergy
Nettle
Long used for seasonal sniffles. Gloves to harvest. The sting disappears when it's dried or steeped.
For allergy
Peppermint
Menthol opens things up. You feel it before you finish the cup.
For allergy
Elderflower
The traditional hay-fever flower. Use the blossoms only, never raw berries, leaves or stems.
For sore throat
Sage
Astringent and antimicrobial. There's a reason it's the classic gargle.
For sore throat
Thyme
Thymol, the compound in thyme, is the same one in some commercial mouthwash.
For sore throat
Marshmallow root
Its mucilage coats a raw throat. Steep it cold for the most slip.
Herbal tea is lovely. It is not a replacement for your doctor.
The almanac
What to do this month in the tea garden
Month by month in Zone 6b. Pull a ribbon to read ahead.
January
Zone 6b
Do now
- Order seedsChamomile, calendula and anise hyssop sell out first.
- Winter sowEchinacea and anise hyssop in jugs outside. The cold does the work.
- Brew from the stashLast summer's jars, finally earning their shelf space.
Coming up
- Start lavender indoorsIt's slow. Give it a head start in February.
- Plan the bedsFull sun for lavender, sage and thyme. Mint gets its own pot.
February
Zone 6b
Do now
- Start lavender indoors10 to 12 weeks before last frost, plus patience.
- Keep winter sowingEchinacea, anise hyssop and nettle like a cold start.
Coming up
- Start chamomile and holy basilMid to late March, under lights.
- Sharpen the snipsYou'll want them in April.
March
Zone 6b
Do now
- Start seeds indoorsChamomile, lemon balm, holy basil and calendula.
- Wake the perennialsCut last year's stems once new growth shows at the base.
Coming up
- Harden offSeedlings go outside a few hours at a time.
- Nettle topsThe first harvest of the year is close.
April
Zone 6b
Do now
- Harvest nettleYoung tops only. Gloves on.
- Direct sowCalendula and chamomile shrug off a light frost.
- Harden offA week of slowly longer days outside.
Coming up
- Last frostUsually early to mid May here.
- Tender herbs go outHoly basil and lemon verbena wait for warm nights.
May
Zone 6b
Do now
- Plant outHoly basil and lemon verbena, after the last frost.
- First mint and lemon balmCut before they flower for the best flavor.
- Keep cutting nettleBefore it flowers.
Coming up
- Chamomile flowersThey start, and then they don't stop.
- CalendulaFirst blooms by June.
June
Zone 6b
Do now
- ChamomilePick every few days. The more you pick, the more you get.
- CalendulaPetals for tea, seed heads for next year.
- Mint and lemon balmOne big cut, then they regrow.
Coming up
- Lavender budsHarvest just as they open.
July
Zone 6b
Do now
- LavenderCut when the first buds open.
- Holy basilPinch the flowers to keep the leaves coming.
- Dry as you goSmall bundles, somewhere dark and airy.
Coming up
- Echinacea and anise hyssopPeak bloom in August.
August
Zone 6b
Do now
- Anise hyssopLeaves and flowers both brew.
- EchinaceaFlower heads, and leave some for the goldfinches.
- Save seedChamomile and calendula.
Coming up
- Pot up lemon verbenaIt won't survive a 6b winter outside.
September
Zone 6b
Do now
- Harvest the tender herbsHoly basil and lemon verbena, before the cold.
- Pot up lemon verbenaBring it in before first frost.
- Last mint cutOne more big one.
Coming up
- First frostUsually mid October here.
- Echinacea rootsFrom plants two or three years old.
October
Zone 6b
Do now
- Dig echinacea rootsFrom older plants. Replant a division.
- Bring lemon verbena insideIt drops its leaves. That's normal.
- Leave the stemsHollow stems are winter housing for native bees.
Coming up
- Jar and labelEverything you dried this summer.
November
Zone 6b
Do now
- Jar and labelDate it. You won't remember.
- Mulch the perennialsLightly around lavender, it hates wet feet.
- BlendNow you finally have time.
Coming up
- Seed catalogsThey arrive in December. Brace.
December
Zone 6b
Do now
- Blend and giftTea is the easiest homemade present.
- Check the jarsToss anything that smells like hay.
- Order seedsBefore the good ones sell out.
Coming up
- Winter sowingStarts in January.
The tea quiz
What kind of tea gardener are you?
Five questions. No wrong answers, only different plants.
5 questions · about a minute
Tell me how you live and I'll tell you what to grow.
1 of 5
Where would your tea garden live?
2 of 5
It's 10pm. What's in your mug?
3 of 5
How much time can you give it in July?
4 of 5
Your favorite part of a recipe is...
5 of 5
Pick the problem you'd most like a cup to solve.
Your tea personality
The Night Owl
Your plants: Chamomile, lemon balm, lavender
You don't need more energy. You need your brain to stop narrating at 11pm. Your garden is a wind-down garden: soft, fragrant, and forgiving of being ignored in August.
![Garden Tea Recipe Book [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/3.png?v=1774035650&width=160)
![Growing Your Own Tea Garden [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/1.png?v=1774035485&width=160)
Better value All four tea garden guides together, for $18 less than buying them one at a time.
Your tea personality
The Porch Potter
Your plants: Mint, lemon verbena, holy basil
You've got a stoop, a balcony, or one sunny windowsill and a lot of ambition. Good. Tea herbs do better in pots than people expect, because you control the soil and the water and nothing else gets a vote.
![Container Tea Garden Companion Guide [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/2.png?v=1774035563&width=160)
![Vertical Gardening Guide [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/7.png?v=1774043416&width=160)
Better value All four tea garden guides together, for $18 less than buying them one at a time.
Your tea personality
The Kitchen Alchemist
Your plants: Anise hyssop, lemon verbena, calendula
You will never follow a recipe exactly and we both know it. You want flavor first, and you want to know why a blend works so you can break the rules on purpose.
Better value All four tea garden guides together, for $18 less than buying them one at a time.
Your tea personality
The Apothecary Keeper
Your plants: Echinacea, holy basil, nettle
You have a notes app full of plant names and at least one jar labeled in handwriting only you can read. You want the whole picture: how it grows, what it does, and what the research says.
![82 Tea Plants: The Complete Growers Directory [SPREADSHEET]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/4.png?v=1774043293&width=160)
Your tea personality
The Wild Tender
Your plants: Chamomile, borage, mint
You'd rather the garden did most of the work. Fair. Plants want to live. Pick the ones that come back on their own, set up the water once, and harvest on your way past.
Better value All four tea garden guides together, for $18 less than buying them one at a time.
Inside the book
Everything between the seed and the cup
Not a coffee table book. A working guide you'll get dirt on.
14
Chapters
From reading your growing space and choosing your first plants through seasonal care, harvesting and drying.
24
Plant guides
One for each plant: how to grow it, when to cut it, and what it's good for in the cup.
10
Blend recipes
Ready to brew from what you grew, so the harvest actually leaves the drying rack.
The bundle ledger
The Complete Tea Garden Library
Keep all four ticked for the bundle price, or strike the ones you don't need. The ledger does the math.
The shelves
Browse the whole cabinet
![Growing Your Own Tea Garden [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/1.png?v=1774035485&width=500)
Growing Your Own Tea Garden$24
The Complete Tea Garden Bundle$47
![Garden Tea Recipe Book [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/3.png?v=1774035650&width=500)
Garden Tea Recipe Book$17
![Container Tea Garden Companion Guide [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/2.png?v=1774035563&width=500)
Container Tea Garden Companion Guide$12
![82 Tea Plants: The Complete Growers Directory [SPREADSHEET]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/4.png?v=1774043293&width=500)
82 Tea Plants: The Complete Growers Directory$12
![Vertical Gardening Guide [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/7.png?v=1774043416&width=500)
![Grow Mushrooms at Home [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/5.png?v=1774043417&width=500)
![Build a Food Forest [EBOOK]](http://shop.thecottagepeach.com/cdn/shop/files/8.png?v=1774043415&width=500)
Free samples
Try a little before anything else
Not ready to buy anything? Fair. These are yours either way.
Get the free guides- the Seasonal Harvest Calendar
- the Seed Starting Timeline
- the First Cup Starter Kit Checklist
- the Herb & Wellness Quick Reference
- Tea Blend Recipe Cards
- Tea Garden Planner Templates and Charts
- Plant Reference Cards
- Start a Tea Garden Checklist
Hi, I'm Dagny
Picture this: You wake up each morning, not to the jarring buzz of an alarm clock, but to birds outside your window.
You step into the garden with a mug in hand and pick a few mint and lemon balm leaves still wet with dew. By the time the kettle boils, you're holding a cup of tea you grew yourself. You feel grounded, connected, and aligned with your true self.
For years, I struggled through the daily drudgery of a corporate job that left me feeling empty and unfulfilled. The fluorescent lights, the endless meetings, the constant pressure to perform all took a toll on my physical and mental well-being. I felt like a wilting plant, starved of sunlight and nourishment.
But then something unexpected happened. Faced with a debilitating chronic illness diagnosis, I turned to the land for solace. I planted a tea garden that became my sanctuary, my teacher, and part of how I take care of myself (don't get me wrong, we love a bit of modern medicine here too!).
tea gardening without the backache
I chose tea because it's the fastest way to taste what a garden can do. Tea from a box has usually traveled and sat on a shelf for a long time before it reaches your cup. Tea from your garden goes from plant to kettle in about ten minutes. You also know exactly what touched it, which is nothing but sun, soil, and rain.
And the plants aren't just pretty. Chamomile contains apigenin, which binds to GABA receptors in the brain, the same receptors targeted by sedatives, just far more gently. Mint's menthol activates the cold receptors in your body, so you feel cooler at a physiological level.
Growing and brewing tea also taught me to slow down. You can't rush a plant, and you can't rush a steep. I learned to appreciate the simple things, to nurture my body and soul, and to find joy in the present moment. Now I'm passionate about sharing what I've learned with you.
This isn't just about tea. It's about growing something, waiting for it, and then actually sitting down to drink it. Subscribe today and let's grow something worth steeping.
Dagny
Beyond the shop
Read, watch and listen
Longer thoughts on growing, slowing down, and what the garden keeps teaching me.
Subscribe free → Videos The Cottage Peach on YouTubeGarden projects, tea blends, and the occasional honest failure.
Watch → Podcast Garden Girls PodcastMeg and I talk plants, and plenty of things that aren't plants.
Listen →