Herbs & Cultures

From plant to use

Tea (infusion)

Hot water poured over leaves and flowers: the simplest and most widely used preparation.

Herbs prepared this way (350)

Level: Easy
Ratio: 1–2 teaspoons of dried herb (or 2–3 teaspoons fresh) per 250 ml cup.
Time: Steep 5–10 minutes, covered; flowers a little shorter, leaves a little longer.
Shelf life: Drink fresh, or keep covered in the fridge for up to 24 hours. Store dried herbs airtight, dark and dry, and use within a year.

For an infusion you pour hot water over soft plant parts such as leaves, flowers and fine herbs and let them steep, covered. Flavour and aroma pass into the water without long heating. Almost every tradition knows this form, from European herbal teas and South American mate to North African mint tea.

Suited to

Leaves, flowers, soft stems and aromatic herbs such as mint, chamomile, lemon balm and linden flowers.

Step by step

Bring fresh water to the boil and let it cool briefly to about 90–95 °C. Green tea and mate do better at 70–80 °C.
Put the herb in the pot or filter and pour the water over it.
Cover, so the volatile aromas do not escape.
Steep, strain and drink warm, or let it cool for iced tea.

Tips

Cold brew: leave dried herbs in cold water in the fridge for 6–12 hours. The taste is softer; drink it within a day.
For your own blend, combine one distinct flavour (mint, lemongrass) with milder herbs.

Registry

Herbs prepared this way

Herbs on this site whose description mentions this preparation. That does not mean every herb is safe to prepare yourself: read the safety information for each one.

Caution
Europe · Herb · № 239
Mistletoe
Viscum album
Traditionally attributed effects: slows the heart rate, lowers blood pressure, antitumour.
Western herbal medicine+1Folklore
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 199
Ox-eye daisy
Leucanthemum vulgare
Young leaves are edible. In folk medicine a tea of the flowers was used for coughs and as a wash; a medicinal effect has not been studied.
Folk magic and herbal magicFolklore
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 46
Milk thistle
Silybum marianum
Promoted for liver disorders, but there is not enough high-quality evidence of effects in people.
Western herbal medicine
Caution
South America · Herb · № 853
Matico
Buddleja globosa
A shrub with orange, ball-shaped flowers. The leaf contains anti-inflammatory compounds such as verbascoside; clinical research on wound healing is lacking.
Mapuche medicine
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 47
Hawthorn
Crataegus monogyna, C. laevigata (en C. pinnatifida)
Studied for heart failure with conflicting results. For most conditions there is little or no good evidence.
Monastic and folk knowledge+3Folklore
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 96
Feverfew
Tanacetum parthenium
Best known for preventing migraine. NCCIH notes the evidence is conflicting: some studies find a small effect, others do not.
Western herbal medicine+2Folklore
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 110
Marsh cudweed
Gnaphalium uliginosum
An astringent herb traditionally used as a gargle for sore throats and inflamed upper airways. There is no clinical research.
Monastic and folk knowledge+1
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 71
Meadowsweet
Filipendula ulmaria
Contains salicylates. Traditionally used for heartburn, an irritated stomach and joint pain. Clinical research is scarce.
Western herbal medicine+2Folklore
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 527
Moringa
Moringa oleifera
Traditionally attributed effects: antispasmodic, stimulating, expectorant, diuretic, dissolves stones; leaves for scurvy and catarrh, flatulence in children, wounds and swellings; bark stimulates the heart in asthma and cough.
Ayurveda+2
Caution
North America · Herb · № 629
Mormon tea
Ephedra viridis, E. nevadensis, E. californica
Traditionally attributed effects: opens the surface in wind-cold with sneezing and a watery nose, mildly eases wheezing and promotes urination.
Chinese medical traditions+1
Caution
Asia · Food · № 792
Maltose (yi tang)
Saccharum granorum (maltose)
Traditionally attributed effects: strengthens qi and spleen, eases pain from cold in the middle and moistens the lungs.
Chinese medical traditions+1
Caution
South America · Herb · № 897
Mullaca
Muehlenbeckia volcanica
A low, creeping shrublet with small, round, leathery leaves and blue-black berries. Tannins and flavonoids have been found in the extract; in rats it was anti-inflammatory.
Kallawaya healing knowledge
Caution
South America · Herb · № 816
Muña
Minthostachys mollis
A mint-like plant used in the Andes for stomach complaints and wind.
Kallawaya healing knowledge+1
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 3
Mint
Mentha × piperita
Peppermint oil has been studied in irritable bowel syndrome and may reduce abdominal pain. The tea is used for a full stomach and nausea. With heartburn peppermint can make complaints worse.
Greco-Roman medicine+4Folklore
Caution
South America · Herb · № 864
Murta (Chilean guava)
Ugni molinae
A shrub of the myrtle family with fragrant red berries. Mainly a food plant; the leaf was used as an astringent.
Mapuche medicine
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 509
Musk mallow
Hibiscus abelmoschus
Traditionally attributed effects: stimulating, carminative, cooling, diuretic, soothing, stomachic, antispasmodic, tonic; for nervous weakness, hysteria, indigestion, gonorrhoea, catarrh of the bladder and airways, itching.
Ayurveda+1
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 530
Night jasmine
Nyctanthes arbor-tristis
Traditionally attributed effects: promotes bile, expels worms, laxative, fever-reducing, anti-inflammatory.
Ayurveda
Caution
South America · Herb · № 858
Natre
Solanum crispum (incl. S. ligustrinum)
A shrub of the nightshade family with very bitter leaves. Traditionally a fever remedy; the berries are poisonous.
Mapuche medicine
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 39
Neem
Azadirachta indica
Used for centuries in traditional medicine in India, but there is insufficient clinical evidence of medical benefits.
Ayurveda+3
Caution
Oceania · Food · № 50
Noni
Morinda citrifolia
Traditionally used for colds, infections, fever, and stomach complaints. There is no good evidence of treatment effects.
Lāʻau lapaʻau in Hawaiʻi+1
Caution
Europe · Food · № 362
Olive
Olea europaea
Olive oil is the basis of the Mediterranean diet, which is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease. Olive leaf extract is sold as a remedy for infections and high blood pressure; the evidence for this is limited and there is no evidence that it treats flu or other viral infections.
Greco-Roman medicine+1
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 434
Orchid tree
Bauhinia variegata
Traditionally attributed effects: bark cleansing, tonic, astringent; root carminative; flowers laxative; for sore throat, cough, bleeding haemorrhoids, heavy menstruation, swollen neck glands, ulcers, diarrhoea, worms, overweight.
Ayurveda
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 217
Oregano
Origanum vulgare
A culinary herb with carvacrol and thymol, which inhibit bacteria and fungi in the laboratory. There is no good evidence that oregano oil treats infections in humans; undiluted oil irritates skin and mucous membranes.
Folk magic and herbal magicFolklore
Caution
North America · Herb · № 153
Osha
Ligusticum porteri, L. sinense en L. wallichii
The root is traditionally used for sore throats, coughs and early colds. There is virtually no clinical research.
Indigenous healing traditions of North America+3
Caution
Europe · Herb · № 97
Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale
The leaf is mildly diuretic; the bitter root was used for the liver and digestion. NCCIH notes there is little human research.
Avicenna's Canon in European universities+6Folklore
Caution
North America · Herb · № 974
Pacific crabapple
Malus fusca
A small apple tree with small, sour, oval apples and very tough wood. The bark contains tannins.
Kwakwaka'wakw medicine
Caution
Asia · Herb · № 443
Palmyra palm
Borassus flabellifer
Traditionally attributed effects: root cooling and restorative; sap diuretic, cooling, stimulating, anti-inflammatory; for hiccups, gastric catarrh, syphilis, gonorrhoea, bile and liver complaints, enlarged spleen, diabetes, tuberculosis.
Ayurveda
Caution
North America · Herb · № 154
Passionflower
Passiflora incarnata
Used for anxiety and sleep problems. NCCIH notes some indications of an effect on anxiety but limited evidence.
Indigenous healing traditions of North America+3Folklore
Caution
South America · Herb · № 912
Pasuchaca
Geranium ayavacense en Geranium sessiliflorum
Low, rosette-forming cranesbills with a thick root. They contain tannins. Whether the tea lowers blood sugar has not been properly studied in people.
Curanderismo of northern Peru
Caution
North America · Herb · № 326
Partridge berry
Mitchella repens
Traditionally attributed effects: stimulates the uterus, tonic, restorative, astringent, diuretic.
Indigenous healing traditions of North America+3
Caution
South America · Herb · № 165
Pau d'arco
Handroanthus impetiginosus (syn. Tabebuia avellanedae)
The inner bark is sold for fungal infections, inflammation and as a 'cancer remedy'. There is no reliable human evidence; its active compound lapachol proved too toxic at effective doses.
The Guaraní and the mate tradition+2
Caution
Europe · Food · № 259
Carrot
Daucus carota
Traditionally attributed effects: stimulating, diuretic, tonic, carminative; expels kidney and bladder stones, relieves lower back pain from the kidneys, reduces oedema, restores the bladder, stimulates digestion; seed traditionally as a contraceptive.
Western herbal medicine+4Folklore
Caution
South America · Herb · № 885
Peruvian matico (spiked pepper)
Piper aduncum
A shrub of the pepper family with rough, fragrant leaves. The leaf was traditionally used to stop bleeding; research is limited.
Kallawaya healing knowledge+1
Caution
South America · Herb · № 884
Peruvian elder
Sambucus peruviana
A tree with white flower umbels and dark berries, related to the European elder. Flowers and leaves are considered sweat-inducing and anti-inflammatory.
Kallawaya healing knowledge+1
Caution
North America · Herb · № 903
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii
A small, spineless, blue-green cactus with a long taproot. Contains mescaline and over thirty other alkaloids. After a few hours mescaline brings colourful visions that last up to half a day, often after a phase of nausea and vomiting.
Indigenous healing traditions of North America
Caution
South America · Herb · № 870
Pichi
Fabiana imbricata
A small shrub of the nightshade family that looks like a conifer. Traditionally for bladder and urinary complaints and for digestion; laboratory research points to a stomach-protecting effect.
Mapuche medicine