Lemon balm
Melissa officinalis
Ground coverPlacenta
Production
A cheerful, fast-filling herb for gaps and part shade, loved by bees and useful in the kitchen. Deadhead it, or it self-seeds across the whole plot.
Tolerances & traits
- Strata
- Ground cover
- Lifecycle
- Placenta
- Soil preference
- Loam, Sandy
- Soil pH range
- 5.5 – 7.5
- Min. temperature
- -25°C
- Min. rainfall
- 500 mm/year
- Wind tolerance
- Medium
- Frost tolerance
- High
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Irrigation needed
- Medium
How to manage it
Fast, hardy pollinator herb that tolerates part shade; cut back after flowering for fresh regrowth and to prevent seed set.
Watch out for
Self-seeds prolifically and spreads by root - can become weedy if flower heads are left to set seed.
Design your line to see how your land fits Lemon balm.
Start designing your line →Related species