Melissa officinalis
Lemon balm
Common names: Melissa, Bee balm
Photo: Lazaregagnidze · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
The lemon balm smells wonderfully lemony when rubbed and gives teas, desserts and summer drinks a fresh note. The winter-hardy, robust perennial is a popular bee garden and comes back reliably year after year.
Care instructions
Place lemon balm in a sunny to partially shaded spot in nutrient-rich, slightly moist soil. Cut it back close to the ground after the first summer flowering, then it will regrow fresh and aromatic. It spreads readily, a root barrier or pot keeps it in check.
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
humus-rich, well-drained, loamy, sandy
Feeding
Light feeder
Companion planting
Good neighbors
nightshade family (Solanaceae)
particularly well establishedYou will find that basil next to tomato and pepper improves taste and keeps whiteflies and aphids away.
For example PotatoSweet pepperCocktail tomatoEggplantCape gooseberryChili and 8 more species in the catalogue
Source: classic companion planting (DACH-Gartenpraxis)
cabbage family (Brassicaceae)
You will notice that the intense scent of basil, thyme, and others confuses the cabbage whitefly and keeps it away from the cabbage family.
For example White cabbageRadishKalebroccolicauliflowerbeet greens and 33 more species in the catalogue
Source: bio-gardening intercropping practice
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
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