How to Make Herbal Tea Blends: Crafting for Flavor, Wellness, and Connection
There’s something intimate about blending your own herbal tea. It’s not just about taste—it’s about intuition, memory, the scent of dried herbs in hand, and the quiet act of choosing what your body might need most today. On our farm, La Ferme À Ciel Sur Mer, we craft our herbal teas with the same care we give to the plants in our fields. It’s a process rooted in observation and experimentation.
If you’ve ever wondered how to make herbal tea blends at home, we hope this guide offers a place to begin—or to return to—with fresh eyes.
Why Blend Your Own Tea?
When you blend your own tea, you get to work directly with the plants. You come to know their flavors, their actions, and their gifts. Herbal tea blending allows you to create something personal and functional, whether it’s for relaxation, digestion, immune support, or simply pleasure.
And just as importantly, it allows you to explore herbs beyond the supermarket staples. A blend might include familiar friends like chamomile or mint, but it might also introduce you to tulsi, milky oats, lemon balm, or calendula—herbs that support the nervous system, gently uplift the spirit, or bring color and brightness to your cup.
At home, I love having a few blends ready to go; something that fits my needs and my mood for that time period. At the same time I love to sometimes just pull down four or five individual herbs to blend something right then and there. It’s great to have the convenience of something prepared but can also be fun to just see a cabinet of herbs and decide then and there what might work for you in the moment. The feeling is magnified knowing where all these beautiful herbs came from, grown and dried with care right on our farm.
Starting with Intention
What Do You Want Your Tea to Do?
At the farm, we always start a blend by asking: What’s this for?
Maybe it’s to wind down after a long harvest day, or to support digestion after a family meal. Maybe it’s something we create in early fall as the seasons shift—a tea that comforts the lungs and offers warmth.
Knowing your intention helps guide the blend. Here are a few common tea goals and herbs we might work with:
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For calm and restoration: milky oats, lemon balm, tulsi, chamomile
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For digestion: peppermint, anise hyssop, calendula
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For immune support: echinacea, elderflower, thyme, hyssop
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For energy and clarity: nettle, rosemary, tulsi, lemon verbena
The Three-Part Tea Formula
Many herbalists use a simple structure when designing a blend. This approach is beautifully outlined in books like “The Herbal Kitchen” by Kami McBride - a great resource for everyday herbalism.
1. Base Herb (40–60%)
This is the bulk of your tea. It’s often mild, nourishing, or neutral-tasting. Think oatstraw, tulsi, or nettle.
2. Supportive Herb (20–40%)
This addresses a specific need or therapeutic goal. For example, lemon balm for stress, or calendula for digestion and lymph support.
3. Accent Herb (10–20%)
This adds aroma, color, or a pop of flavor—like mint, rose, or lavender.
This formula isn’t a rule, just a guide. Some blends might call for more creativity, especially when you're working with bold herbs or bright flavors.
Lessons from the Field
Following the Seasons
One of the joys of living and growing here at La Ferme À Ciel Sur Mer is how each season brings new possibilities for tea blending. In spring, we gravitate toward nettle, lemon balm, and violet leaves—herbs that feel cleansing and tender. In summer, we reach for cooling mints, tulsi, and anise hyssop, often pairing them with vibrant calendula petals. Come fall and winter, it's the warming herbs that take center stage: thyme, ginger root, hyssop, and dried chamomile gathered in July.
We’ve learned over time that seasonal blends don’t just reflect what's growing—they also reflect what our bodies naturally crave. And they preserve memory, too. A summer blend of tulsi, lemon verbena, and calendula can bring a bit of sunshine to a rainy November day.
See Kat Maier’s wonderful book, “Energetic Herbalism: A Guide to Sacred Plant Traditions Integrating Elements of Vitalism, Ayurveda and Chinese Medicine” for more on this topic.
Working with the Herbs
Dry, Store, and Blend
Once your herbs are harvested and dried, you’ll want to store them in clean, airtight containers, away from light and heat. We use glass jars in a cool pantry on the farm, labeling each with the harvest date and part used—leaf, flower, or root.
When you’re ready to blend, set aside a quiet moment. This can be a sensory experience: feel the texture of the dried leaves, smell the sweetness of anise hyssop or the peppery green scent of tulsi. We often blend by hand, using large mixing bowls and wooden spoons, adjusting ratios as we go.
A Few Herbs We Love to Use
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Chamomile – Softly floral, soothing, with a golden color that looks beautiful in blends.
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Calendula – Bright orange or yellow petals that support digestion and skin health.
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Tulsi (Holy Basil) – Spicy-sweet and uplifting; blends beautifully with lemon balm or mint.
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Nettle – Deeply nourishing and mineral-rich; a strong base herb.
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Lemon Balm – Calming, lemony, and aromatic—wonderful for stress and digestion.
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Anise Hyssop – Sweet, minty-licorice flavor; a beloved accent in many of our blends.
We put together a chart of the herbs we grow, what each pairs with, benefits as well as common herbal actions. Have a look here and let us know what you think. We’d love your feedback.
A Favorite Farm Blend
Sunset Tea
One of our favorite blends on the farm is what we call “Sunset Tea.” It’s the one we sip after planting long rows in spring or after bundling the last herbs to dry in summer. It’s calming, restorative, and gently floral.
Sunset Tea (for a 1-quart jar):
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2 parts tulsi
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2 parts lemon balm
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1 part chamomile
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1 part calendula
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½ part anise hyssop
To brew: Steep 1–2 tablespoons in just-boiled water for 10–15 minutes. Sip warm, preferably with bare feet in the grass.
Trust Your Senses (and Your Joy)
There’s no single right way to make herbal tea. The best blends come from curiosity, experimentation, and listening—both to your body and to the herbs themselves. Don’t worry about getting it perfect. Start simple. Keep notes. Taste often.
On the farm, our best blends often start as experiments—something someone threw together after a long day, or a moment of inspiration during harvest. Over time, they become part of our rhythm.
Closing Thoughts: Tea as Tending
Herbal tea is a form of tending. It tends the nervous system, the gut, the lungs, the spirit. But it also helps us tend to our relationship with the land—with the plants who grow in our soil and offer themselves to our care.
Whether you’re just starting your tea-blending journey or deepening a long-standing practice, we invite you to let joy lead the way. May your blends nourish you as much as the act of making them does.
And if you're looking to explore more herbs, visit our online shop for seasonal offerings of organically grown herbal tea blends and single herbs.
Frequently Asked Questions About Crafting Herbal Tea Blends
What herbs should I start with for blending herbal teas?
Some great beginner-friendly herbs include chamomile, lemon balm, mint, nettle, and tulsi. These herbs are generally gentle, tasty, and supportive for a range of needs—from calm to digestion. Start with just a few and explore how they taste alone or in simple combinations.
How do I know which herbs are safe to mix?
Many herbs work beautifully together, but it’s a good idea to research each one’s actions and any potential contraindications—especially if you’re pregnant, nursing, or taking medications. Stick to well-known, food-safe herbs when starting out, and consult a trusted herbal reference or practitioner when in doubt.
Try resources like Herbal Academy’s Herbarium for well-researched plant monographs.
How long should I steep my herbal tea?
Most herbal teas benefit from a longer steep than traditional black or green teas. We recommend steeping 1–2 tablespoons of dried herbs per cup of just-boiled water for 10–15 minutes (or even longer, if making a strong infusion). Use a lid while steeping to keep the essential oils from evaporating.
Can I use fresh herbs instead of dried?
Yes, but you’ll need a larger quantity—about three times as much as dried herbs. Fresh herbs can make beautiful summer blends, though they don’t store as well, so make them in small batches and drink them soon after preparation.
How do I store homemade herbal blends?
Keep your dried blends in airtight containers (glass jars work well), stored in a cool, dark place. Label them with the blend name and date, and aim to use them within a year for best flavor and potency. Some herbs will last considerably longer and some shorter. Reach out for specific info on the shelf life of our herbs.