Lemon Balm, Melissa officinalis, is one of the most prolific plants in my herb garden, and is certainly the most cheerful. Bees flock to the flowers, and it was grown in Ancient Greece at the temples of Artemis (and later Diana in Roman paganism) were it was sacred to her. Monks in the Middle Ages grew lemon balm in their monasteries to keep their bees happy, and it has long been a culinary herb used for its bright lemony flavor. Try it in home-brewed ales and wines if you’re an acolyte of Artemis or Diana and offer it up as a ritual drink.

Cunningham assigns Lemon Balm to the Moon, which makes since given the connection to Artemis and Diana, both Moon goddesses, but I particularly like Harold Roth’s assertion that lemon balm is a plant of Venus, and it is in love spells that our Sweet Melissa shines. It can be used with either association in baths, tea, sachets, infused in wine, or made into ointment and rubbed into the skin. Bee magick is of course a perfect way to use it, either through a protection spell for our beleaguered bees, or as an offering to Melissa, an early bee deity. Famously, lemon balm is an ingredient in Carmelite Water.

I use lemon balm everyday, and grow great masses of it to make sure that I always have it on hand. I love it in herbal tea blends and especially in the Calm tincture that I make and use. Medicinally it is a nervine, meaning that it affects the central nervous system, working to calm frayed nerves and to soothe anxiety and restlessness. It is somehow at once calming and also uplifting, and I’ve had real success using it to treat my own anxiety and Seasonal Affective Disorder.

In teas, lemon balm pairs well with lavender, rose petals, and milky oats.

Planet: Moon and Venus

Gender: Feminine

This purchase is for one 1 ounce package of homegrown dried lemon balm.