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21 Traditional Must-Grow Plants for Home Medicinal Gardens

Growing things like our ancestors is popular, with kitchen and medicinal gardens near the house. I'm often asked what to plant. Here are 21 historical health-supporting plants, easily grown at home.

1. Echinacea

Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is not just aesthetically pleasing, but can also be used to lessen cold symptoms and may help with anxiety. The easy-to-grow perennial thrives in full sun with well-drained soil and blooms annually.

2. Lavender

In his 1652 book, Nicholas Culpeper described lavender, a common garden inhabitant, as needing no description. Lavenders can thrive in cold areas, with some loss during harsh winters.

3. Horehound

I adore this wooly-leaved mint family member, used for making tasty cough lozenges every year. Being hardy like all mint family members, choose its location carefully as it likes to spread.

4. Elderberries

Elderberry, known for its immune boosting berries and elderflowers, is used to produce syrup, gummies, cordials, wine, and lemonade. Hardy and easy to propagate, it is loved by both humans and birds.

5. Chamomile

Chamomile, treasured for centuries as a healing tea, deserves a spot in any medicinal or tea garden. As Beatrix Potter puts it in "The Tale of Peter Rabbit": "His mother...made some chamomile tea: "One table-spoonful to be taken at bedtime."

6. Catnip

Catnip, appreciated for its medicinal properties, can be used to make soothing tea. Steep fresh or dried leaves in hot water for 10 minutes. This herb, a mint family member, is hardy and wandering.

7. Lemon Balm

Lemon balm, a refreshing herb, has calming effects as found in a 2004 study. It's also great for culinary uses like these homemade lollipops my kids love.

8. Elecampane

Elecampane, a towering plant in traditional medicinal gardens, supports lung health. Its roots and blossoms attract diverse pollinators, including monarch butterflies. It survives cold Maine winters.

9. Raspberry

Red raspberry leaf tea, high in antioxidants, is often recommended for pregnancy support. It has an earthy taste enjoyed year-round. It's joined by homegrown teas such as catnip & chamomile on my shelf.

10. Feverfew

Feverfew is a beautiful, medicinal plant often used for headaches and migraines. It's a tender perennial that sometimes survives winters in zone 5. Easy to start from seed, it thrives in full sun.

11. Peppermint

Peppermint, a well-known food flavor, also has a rich medicinal history. Place this calming and hardy plant somewhere it can spread or grow it in a raised bed or container garden.

12. Blackberries

Blackberries, considered healing since 1832, are not just for eating & baking. Lydia Child claimed they can cure dysentery & their tea or syrup has health benefits. They're hardy & easy to grow with pruning.

13. Rosemary

Rosemary has a long history in health and skincare. According to the 1525 'An Herbal', it can be used for sweet dreams or boiled to counter body ailments. Rosemary thrives in zones 7+ and likes to dry out between waterings.

14. Yarrow

Yarrow, a flowering perennial, possibly appears as a wildflower in gardens without special cultivation. Historically used medicinally across cultures, it's now common in medicinal gardens. Being hardy, pollinators adore this 'easy keeper' plant.

15. Plantain

Plantain leaves are of two types, narrow and broad. As a kid, I used squished plantains on injuries, and they felt soothing. Learn more about plantains' benefits in this study. My kids prefer a homemade salve, featuring plantain.

16. Mullein

Mullein, a medicinal plant used for its cough-soothing properties, is commonly grown in medicinal gardens. It's a tall, wooly plant, also known as Jacob's Staff, that's easy to grow but could potentially shade shorter plants.

17. Basil

Basil, often a kitchen herb, also doubled as a medicinal herb for issues like digestion to melancholy as per John Gerard's 1579 volume, The Herball. It's an easy-to-grow annual plant.

18. Stinging Nettle

Stinging nettle, often used internally and externally, is valuable despite its sting. It's present in skin care and dried for soothing soaps. Being invasive like mint, carefully choose its location.

19. Calendula

Like plantain, calendula is used for topical ailments, such as burns, cuts, rashes, and bee stings. This study has more on its chemical makeup. Cold-averse, calendula is often grown as an annual from seed.

20. Violets and Johnny Jump- Ups

Violets, pansies, and Johnny jump-ups belong to the viola family and were used as a remedy for various ailments, including heart issues. For more, visit the viola tricolor Wikipedia page.

21. Bee Balm

Bee balm is a showy plant used traditionally for various ailments. It is popular in medicinal gardens and attracts diverse native species, including endangered ones. It's a hardy plant thriving down to zone 3, prefers well-drained areas with good air flow.

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